Gadbolt

Gadbolt Lake is a 69-acre lake with a maximum depth of 15 feet. The lake is located six miles south of the city of Walker and is within the Chippewa National Forest. With the exception of a small parcel of land in the southeast corner of the lake, the entire shoreline is publicly owned and undeveloped. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resource has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different lake classes based on physical and chemical characteristics. Gadbolt Lake is in lake class 42. There is a user-developed access for smaller boats on the north end of the lake off of Forest Road 2815.Though not confirmed, Gadbolt Lake likely had a partial or total winterkill during the winter of 1995 - 96. Several other area lakes suffered winterkill during this winter, and anglers fishing Gadbolt Lake reported being unable to catch largemouth bass during May 1996. Adult largemouth bass were stocked in late May 1996. This was the only sportfish species that was known to be present in Gadbolt Lake prior to 1997.Northern pike, bluegill, and yellow perch were sampled for the first time since the winterkill. The origin of these fish is unknown. It is assumed some individual introduced these species following the winterkill.Transporting and stocking live fish is not legal without a permit from the DNR Section of Fisheries. When largemouth bass were the only sportfish in Gadbolt Lake, angler catch rates were very high. Many young anglers were introduced to largemouth bass angling on the lake. Though small in size, many bass could be caught during a fishing trip. Due to competition created by other fish species being present, angler catch rates of largemouth bass are expected to be much lower now.Northern pike abundance in the 1999 sampling was greater than in most lakes of this type. Fish showed a wide variety of lengths including a lot of northern pike in the 25 to 28 inch range. There were four different ages of fish in the sample indicating that northern pike had successfully spawned in Gadbolt Lake. Growth was excellent with a three year old female northern pike averaging 23 inches long.There were many bluegill present, however, they were small. With the exception of one fish, all bluegill sampled were under seven inches long. These fish were probably the offspring of a few adults introduced after the winterkill. Bluegill were growing well with a two-year-old fish being four inches long. To maintain or improve the quality, anglers need to use some restraint if large bluegill are really biting. Releasing the larger bluegill and keeping the smaller ones for eating will allow more to grow to quality size. Quality size bluegill have disappeared from many lakes due to excessive harvest by anglers.Yellow perch were abundant enough that they could be an important food source for northern pike and largemouth bass.With the winterkill and introduction of other fish species, largemouth bass were not as abundant and were growing faster than in 1987. There are a lot of logs and stumps in the water to provide cover for bass.Anglers can help maintain or improve the quality of fishing by practicing selective harvest. Selective harvest allows for the harvest of smaller fish for table fare, but encourages release of medium to large size fish. Releasing these fish will help maintain the fish population in Gadbolt Lake and will provide anglers with opportunities to catch more and larger fish in the future. Large fish can help maintain balance in the fish community.

SPECIAL PROBLEMS:A WINTERKILL TOOK PLACE THE WINTER OF 1959-60. TOTAL PHOSPHOROUS IS AT 0.003 PPM INDICATING LOW FERTILITY OF THE WATER.ADDITIONAL FIELD NOTES: DEAD, ROOTED, TREES IN THE WATER TO A DEPTH OF 6.4 FEET INDICATING THE LAKE HAS RISEN.PRESENT FISH POPULATION:LARGEMOUTH BASS AGES AND GROWTH RATES WERE CALCULATED IN BOTH 1976 AND 1988. THE RESULTS AT BOTH TIMES CLEARLY SHOWED A POPULATION OF LARGEMOUTH BASS IN WHICH ALL YEAR-CLASSES WERE REPRESENTED. HOWEVER, THEY WERE SMALL AND EXTREMELY SLOW GROWING. CURRENT AND PREVIOUS NETTING INFORMATION INDICATES THE FISH POPULATION IS MADE UP OF ENTIRELY LARGEMOUTH BASS WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE OCCASIONAL WHITE SUCKER.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch, and Bluegill in Gadbolt. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

We don't have a confirmed public access point on record for Gadbolt. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for current access details before you go.

Gadbolt has a maximum depth of 15 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Gadbolt is from 1999. Surveys this old should be treated with some caution — fish populations change over time.

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