First Crow Wing

First Crow Wing Lake is located seven miles east of Hubbard in southern Hubbard County. First Crow Wing is part of a chain of lakes running from Eleventh Crow Wing Lake at the headwaters, down to First Crow Wing Lake. First Crow Wing Lake has a surface area of 522 acres and a maximum depth of 15 feet. A DNR-owned public access is located south of the lake on the Crow Wing River, off County Road 109. A DNR-owned undeveloped access for carry-in craft, and winter access is located on the northwest shore of the lake as part of the Crow Wing Chain Wildlife Management Area. Boating access is also available from the Crow Wing River connecting it to Second Crow Wing Lake, although the river can be very shallow with dense stands of wild rice. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. First Crow Wing Lake is in Lake Class 39. Class 39 lakes are generally shallow with a high littoral area (less than 15 feet in depth), and a regularly shaped shoreline. Other class 39 lakes in the Park Rapids area include: Fourth Crow Wing, Ham, Hennepin, Loon, Minnie, Paine, Peysenski, Portage, Rice, Shallow, Upper Twin, Wolf, Hungryman and Stocking. First Crow Wing Lake supports a healthy panfish population and can provide good fishing for Black Crappie and Bluegill. Black Crappie abundance was up, but still moderate numbers compared to other local lakes. Most of the crappies were 8 - 9 inches. With fish up to 12.2 inches. Bluegills were sampled in good numbers, similar to past surveys. Anglers will find most Bluegill and Pumpkinseed in the 5.5 - 9-inch size range. A special regulation of a daily limit of 5 for Bluegill was implemented in 2022. The objective of the lowered bag limit is to spread out the harvest and allow for more fish to attain larger sizes (8-10 inches). Summer sampling show Largemouth Bass were good sized and moderate numbers. They had an average length of 14.3 inches, with fish sampled up to 17 inches. Anglers can expect to find an abundant population of Northern Pike in First Crow Wing Lake. Northern Pike had an average length and weight of 21 inches and 2 pounds, with the largest measured at 31.5 inches in 2024. Walleyes were found in low numbers but were generally a nice size. They had an average length of 18 inches, with fish sampled up to 27 inches. Yellow Perch, an important forage species for both Walleye and Northern Pike were sampled in low numbers. No perch over 8 inches were sampled, making most fish too small for anglers. First Crow Wing Lake was listed in 2011 as infested with faucet snails, an aquatic invasive species (AIS). To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the access.

First Crow Wing Lake (29-0086-00) is a 522.02-acre lake with a maximum depth of 15 feet located 6 miles south of Nevis, MN. Park Rapids Fisheries staff conducted a survey targeting near shore fish species on July 11, 2019 to assess populations of non-game and small sport fish. Fourteen 100-foot sampling sites were evenly spaced around the lake shore, sampling a variety of habitat types. Each site was sampled by backpack electrofishing and seining with a 50-foot or 15-foot 1/8th-inch mesh seine, depending on habitat conditions. During this assessment, two sites were sampled with a 50-foot seine and six sites were sampled with a 15-foot seine. Site conditions prevented the use of seines at six sites. Backpack electrofishing was done at all 14 sites, several of which were conducted from the side of the boat. Nearshore sampling captured eight species of fish including one species intolerant of disturbance; Banded Killifish. Other species sampled during the nearshore effort included Black Crappie, Brown Bullhead, Central Mudminnow, Iowa Darter, Largemouth Bass, Least Darter, Northern Pike, and Yellow Perch. Nearshore catches will be used along with gill net and trap net catch data from a standard fisheries survey conducted on August 5, 2019, to calculate a fish-based Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) score, which is indicative of the health of First Crow Wing Lake. This survey is contributing to a watershed assessment process in coordination with MN Pollution Control Agency. First Crow Wing Lake is located in the Crow Wing River Watershed.

First Crow Wing Lake is located seven miles east of Hubbard in southern Hubbard County. First Crow Wing is part of a chain of lakes running from Eleventh Crow Wing Lake at the headwaters, down to First Crow Wing Lake. First Crow Wing Lake has a surface area of 522 acres and a maximum depth of 15 feet. A public access is located south of the lake on the Crow Wing River, off of County Road 109. An undeveloped access for carry-in craft, and winter access is located on the northwest shore of the lake as part of the Crow Wing Chain Wildlife Management Area. Boating access is also available from the Crow Wing River connecting it to Second Crow Wing Lake, although the river can be very shallow with dense stands of wild rice. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. First Crow Wing Lake is in Lake Class 39. Class 39 lakes are generally shallow with a high littoral area (less than 15 feet in depth), and a regularly shaped shoreline. Other class 39 lakes in the Park Rapids area include: Fourth Crow Wing, Ham, Hennepin, Loon, Minnie, Paine, Peysenski, Portage, Shallow, Upper Twin, Hungryman and Stocking. First Crow Wing Lake supports a healthy panfish population and can provide good fishing for Black Crappie and Bluegill. Black Crappie abundance was up, but still moderate numbers compared to other local lakes. Most crappies fit in two size groups of 5 - 7 inches and 9.5 - 13 inches. Bluegills were sampled in good numbers, similar to past surveys. Anglers will find most Bluegill and Pumpkinseed in the 5.5-9 inch size range. Spring and summer sampling show Largemouth Bass were good sized and moderate numbers. They had an average length of 13.5 inches, with fish sampled over 19 inches. Anglers can expect to find an abundant population of Northern Pike in First Crow Wing Lake. Northern Pike had an average length and weight of 21 inches and 2 pounds, with the largest measured at 28.5 inches in 2019. Walleyes were found in low numbers, but were generally a nice size. They had an average length of 18 inches, with fish sampled up to 27 inches. Yellow Perch, an important forage species for both Walleye and Northern Pike were sampled in low numbers. No perch over 8.5 inches were sampled, making most fish too small for anglers. First Crow Wing Lake was listed in 2011 as infested with faucet snails, an aquatic invasive species (AIS). To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the access.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Northern Pike, Black Crappie, Largemouth Bass, Walleye, and Rock Bass in First Crow Wing. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

Minnesota DNR records list public access for First Crow Wing. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for the launch type and directions before you go.

First Crow Wing has a maximum depth of 15 feet and a mean depth of 4 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in First Crow Wing is from 2024.

Yes — First Crow Wing has confirmed faucet snail. Clean, drain, and dry your equipment to avoid spreading invasives to other waters.