Nelson

Nelson Lake is located six miles southwest of Laporte, and is within the Paul Bunyan State Forest. Nelson has a surface area of 40 acres and a maximum depth of 19.5 feet. There is a state owned primitive campground and public access on the northeast shore of the lake. The Minnesota DNR has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Nelson is in lake class 37. Class 37 lakes generally are small, regularly shaped, shallow lakes, with a high percentage of littoral area (depths less than 15 feet), with soft and turbid water. Other class 37 lakes in the Park Rapids area include: Brush, Claussens, Crow Wing, Deadhorse, Giles, Hay, Round, Shinker, and Sweitzer. Due to its small size, Nelson Lake is very susceptible to over-harvest. Anglers must practice selective harvest if they want to improve or maintain the fishery. Northern Pike abundance was in line with similar lakes, but below the long term average for Nelson Lake. The average size of 20.7 inches and 2 pounds was larger than recent surveys. Largemouth Bass abundance was in line with previous years, and in the upper range of other similar lakes. Most fish were small with an average size of 7.3 inches, with fish sampled up to 13.7 inches. Angling opportunities for panfish include Bluegill and Pumpkinseed. Bluegill and Pumpkinseed abundance was lower than recent years, but higher than similar lakes. Most fish were small at 3-5 inches, but there were some larger Bluegills with the largest at 9 inches. Yellow Perch are important forage for Walleyes and Northern Pike, but perch abundance was the lowest recorded 2015. Perch were a small, with an average size of 6.3 inches. Walleyes have not been stocked since 1993, but are still being sampled in surveys and appear to be naturally reproducing. Fish were all large, amd were between 18.7 and 26.8 inches. Currently no aquatic invasive species (AIS) have been identified in Nelson. 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.

Nelson Lake is a small 33 acre lake located within the Paul Bunyan State Forest in Hubbard County. Nelson Lake is a shallow lake with a maximum depth of only 20.0 feet. There is a DNR forestry campground and public access on the northeast shore of the lake. Nelson Lake is susceptible to over-harvest from angling due to its small size, low fertility and slow growth rates of game fish. Anglers must practice selective harvest if they want to improve or maintain the fishery in Nelson Lake.The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical and chemical characteristics. Nelson Lake is in lake class 37. Other area lakes in this same classification include Brush, Claussens, Crow Wing, Deadhorse, Giles, Goose, Hay, Round, Shinker, and Sweitzer.Nelson Lake provides fishing opportunities for northern pike, largemouth bass, and panfish. Anglers will find good numbers of northern pike, however, small, "hammer handle" pike dominate the population. Sampled northern pike had an average length and weight of 18.8 inches and 1.8 pounds with fish measured up to 32.3 inches. Northern pike were introduced into Nelson Lake during high water periods in 1985. High water levels formed a connection from Nelson Lake to near by Lake Twenty-One, which had an existing northern pike population. Anglers will find good numbers of largemouth bass, bluegill, and pumpkinseed, though average size of fish tends to run small. Anglers will find lots of bluegill and pumpkinseed in the 5-6 inch range with a few fish over 7.0 inches. Anglers will find that yellow perch are an acceptable size for angling with perch in the 9-10 inch range. Sampled yellow perch had a heavy infestation of yellow grub. Yellow grub is a parasite that shows up in the fillet tissue of fish. It is not harmful to humans but many anglers find it unsightly. Anglers may still catch and occasional walleye in Nelson Lake. Walleye were stocked in Nelson Lake periodically from 1978 to 1993.

Nelson Lake is a small (33 acre) remote lake with a forestry camping area and a public access, the only development on a wooded shoreline. The present walleye abundance is greater than similar lakes in the Park Rapids area (Dead Horse, Sweitzer, Shinker) in lake class 37 as none of the other lakes in lake class 37 have walleyes. Northern pike abundance is comparable to some of the similar lakes. The average size of the northern pike sampled in 1993 was 18.4 inches and 1.1 pounds. Bluegills are abundant in Nelson Lake with a good number of quality length of 6.0 to 8.0 inches. However, no bluegill of preferred size, 8.0 inches to 10.0 inches were sampled. The yellow perch abundance has been decreasing while their mean weight has been increasing with 40% of the yellow perch sampled being 10.0 inches or more.

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

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

Nelson has a maximum depth of 19.5 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Nelson is from 2015. Surveys this old should be treated with some caution — fish populations change over time.

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