Rabbit (East Portion)

East Rabbit Lake is a 638 acre lake located just north of Cuyuna in Crow Wing County. East Rabbit has an interesting history. It was diked off and drained in the 1950s in order to mine the iron ore located below the lake. In the 1960s and 70s the lake refilled, and in 1978 was reconnected to West Rabbit. A public access is located in the channel between the two lakes. Thanks to the old mine pit, the lake reaches depths of 337'. The remainder of the lake is shallower, with 31' being the maximum depth. Overall, 38% of the lake is 15' deep or less. Water clarity was good with a secchi disk reading of 15.5'. Walleye fingerlings are stocked in alternate years (484 lbs). The walleye catch of 4.0/gill net was average compared to similar lakes. Size was nice, with an average length of 20.1"and 95% of the fish measuring 12" or larger. A 24"-36" protected slot regulation is in effect for Northern Pike in East Rabbit. The catch rate was average at 5.6/gill net. Average length was 22.2" and 35% of the fish were 24" or larger. Largemouth Bass were sampled by a spring electrofishing survey at a rate of 112/hr. Average length was 12.2" and 61% measured at least 12" in length. Fish ranged in size from 6.9" to 17.8" Bluegills were sampled in average numbers (13.8/trap net) although their size was small. Bluegills averaged 5.2" in length, with only 8% measuring at least 7" in length. Black Crappies were captured in average numbers at 0.4/trap net for this type of lake. Size was good, with 71% of the fish being 8" or larger. Fish as large as 12.3" were caught. No invasive species have been discovered in East Rabbit Lake, but they are located in the local area. Before and after launching lake users are required to inspect and remove any aquatic plants and animals from their watercraft and trailers as well as pull the plug and drain all water from the watercraft, including bilges, livewells and baitwells.

East Rabbit Lake is a 638 acre lake located just north of Cuyuna in Crow Wing County. East Rabbit is a natural lake which was drained in the 1950's in order to mine the iron ore located beneath the lake. Thanks to the old mine pit the lake reaches depths of 337'. The remainder of the lake is shallower with 31' being the maximum depth. Overall 38% of the lake is 15' deep or less. A nearshore survey was conducted to assess the populations of both game and non-game fish species. Fourteen 100' long sampling stations were evenly spaced around the lakeshore. Each station was then sampled by backpack electrofishing, and if conditions allowed with a 15' or 50' 1/8th inch seine. In this survey all 14 stations were sampled by backpack electrofishing. The 15' 1/8th inch seine was used at four stations, and the 50' 1/8th inch seine was used at four additional stations. Six stations had heavy vegetation and/or soft sediment which did not allow for seining. A total of 21 species were sampled including blacknose shiner, blackchin shiner, mimic shiner, and pugnose shiner. This nearshore survey will be used along with the gillnet and trapnet survey on 13-16 July 2015, to calculate an Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) score. This score will be an indicator of the health of East Rabbit Lake.

East Rabbit Lake is a 638 acre lake located just north of Cuyuna in Crow Wing County. East Rabbit has an interesting history. It was diked off and drained in the 1950s in order to mine the iron ore located below the lake. In the 1960s and 70s the lake refilled, and in 1978 was reconnected to West Rabbit. A public access is located in the channel between the two lakes. Thanks to the old mine pit the lake reaches depths of 337'. The remainder of the lake is shallower with 31' being the maximum depth. Overall 38% of the lake is 15' deep or less. Water clarity was good with a secchi disk reading of 15'. A 24"-36" protected slot regulation is in effect for northern pike in East Rabbit. When compared to similar lakes the northern pike gillnet catch of 4.8/net was average, but the average size of 24.8" and 3.4 lbs was above average. Northern pike at least 24" in length made up 51% of the catch, with fish up to 34.5" sampled. Walleye fingerlings are stocked in alternate years (484 lbs). The walleye gillnet catch of 2.6/net was low compared to similar lakes. Average size was nice at 17.3"and 2.1 lbs. Largemouth bass were sampled by a spring electrofishing survey at a rate of 33.5/hr. Average length was 11.0" and 42% measured at least 12" in length. Largemouth bass were captured in high numbers in gillnets at 1.2/net. Average length was 13.2". In addition one 14.8" smallmouth was captured in gillnets. Bluegills were sampled in average numbers in trapnets, although their size was small. Bluegills averaged 4.7" in length, with only 2% measured at least 7" in length. Black crappies were captured in average numbers in trapnets. Average length was 10.1". No invasive species have been discovered in East Rabbit Lake, but they are located in the local area. Before and after launching lake users are required to inspect and remove any aquatic plants and animals from their watercraft and trailers as well as pull the plug and drain all water from the watercraft, including bilges, livewells and baitwells.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, Rock Bass, and Hybrid Sunfish in Rabbit (East Portion). See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

Rabbit (East Portion) has a maximum depth of 337 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Rabbit (East Portion) is from 2021.

Yes — Rabbit (East Portion) has confirmed zebra mussel. Clean, drain, and dry your equipment to avoid spreading invasives to other waters.