East Toqua

East Toqua Lake borders Graceville in west-central Minnesota. It is 428 acres and has a maximum depth of nine feet. The lake is highly productive and water clarity is often low. Toqua County Park is located along the south shoreline and it provides a boat launch, fishing pier, shore angling, picnicking and camping. Toqua Lake is managed primarily for walleyes, with secondary emphasis on black crappies, northern pike and yellow perch. An extensive winterkill occurred during 2022-2023 which eliminated gamefish from the lake. Adult walleyes, walleye fry and adult yellow perch were stocked in spring of 2023. Black crappies will be stocked when they become available. This Targeted Survey used trap nets and seining to evaluate the stockings. Results indicated good survival of stocked walleye fry and adults. High numbers of naturally reproduced young-of-year yellow perch were also found. Fish typically grow fast in East Toqua Lake and a good fishery is expected to result within two years. Adequate numbers of adult walleyes were stocked to provide an immediate limited fishery. Other fish caught included bigmouth buffalo, black bullheads, common carp, fathead minnows, northern pike, quillback and white suckers.

East Toqua Lake is located in Graceville in west-central Minnesota. It is 428 acres and has a maximum depth of nine feet. The lake is highly productive and water clarity is often low. Toqua County Park is located along the south shoreline and it provides a boat launch, convenient shore angling, picnicking and camping. Toqua Lake is managed primarily for Walleyes, with secondary emphasis on Black Crappies, Northern Pike and Yellow Perch. This 2020 Targeted Survey collected routine fish population data using gill nets and trap nets. These data can be compared to historical Standard and Targeted Survey data from East Toqua Lake. Walleyes were abundant and the majority were 14-20 inches. A strong 2016 Walleye year class was present and those fish averaged 19 inches. Walleyes were also present from four other year classes. Walleye natural reproduction has been poor and Walleye fry are routinely stocked to maintain the population. Walleye fry are also stocked into Lannon Lake and Golf Course Pond, and some of those Walleyes likely contribute to the East Toqua population by downstream migration. Anglers have reported catching large Northern Pike on occasion, however in the last few surveys pike numbers were relatively low. Pike typically grow fast and die young in East Toqua Lake. Adequate forage is usually available to allow pike to grow fast, however most of them have typically disappeared from the population before reaching five years of age. Pike are very susceptible to angling and are often removed from the population prior to reaching 30 inches. In addition, cool-water refuge areas do not exist in East Toqua Lake and some pike likely die due to high water temperatures during the heat of the summer. Northern Pike are stocked when needed and available. East Toqua Lake is in the north-central management zone meaning the possession limit is 10 Northern Pike but not more than two pike may be longer than 26 inches; and all from 22 to 26 inches must be released. Spearers must follow the same rules except one pike may be between 22 and 26 inches or two larger than 26 inches. Relatively high numbers of Yellow Perch were present in 2020. More than 40% of the perch were over nine inches including several over 12 inches. Yellow Perch are stocked when numbers become low but natural reproduction has sustained the population in recent years. Adult Black Crappies were present in low numbers but high numbers of young-of-year crappies were sampled in recent surveys, and in 2020, indicating good natural reproduction has occurred. Walleye predation of young crappies has likely been limiting their survival to adulthood. Bluegills had been stocked historically and they have readily reproduced at times. However, little habitat in the form of rooted plants has been present to provide cover and food for young Bluegills and their survival has been poor. Fisheries management activities scheduled for East Toqua Lake include fish surveys, winter oxygen monitoring and stocking fish as appropriate.

East Toqua Lake is located adjacent to Graceville in Big Stone County. It is managed primarily for Walleyes, with secondary emphasis on Northern Pike, Black Crappie and Yellow Perch. The most recent assessment in 2017 indicated quality Walleye and Yellow Perch populations were present. East Toqua is a shallow prairie lake that has a history of low winter oxygen. Dissolved oxygen is routinely measured throughout the winter and the Toqua Sportsman's club operates an aeration system. Near record amounts of snow fell in the area during the winter of 2018-2019. By mid-February, dissolved oxygen was less than 1 ppm in most of the water column, indicating potential winterkill conditions. At ice out, some dead gamefish were observed along shore. In spring, two trap nets and one gill net were set to check for the presence of gamefish. Gamefish were abundant in the nets and various sizes of Walleye, Yellow Perch and Black Crappie were caught. Though some dead fish were observed at ice-out, it did not appear winterkill had a large effect on game fish populations in East Toqua.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Yellow Perch, Walleye, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, and Bluegill in East Toqua. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

Minnesota DNR records list public access for East Toqua. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for the launch type and directions before you go.

East Toqua has a maximum depth of 9 feet and a mean depth of 6 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in East Toqua is from 2020.

No invasive species are on record for East Toqua in Minnesota DNR data. Always clean, drain, and dry your equipment to help keep it that way.