Krans

Krans Lake, located in Chisago and Isanti Counties, has a surface area of 42 acres and has been assigned to lake class 30. The lake is managed primarily for northern pike with bluegill sunfish, black crappie and largemouth bass as the secondary species. Low winter oxygen levels and winterkill cause great variaton in game fish abundance. During the week of June17, 2008, a lake survey was conducted on Krans Lake to determine the present status of the fish population. Northern pike, not present in 1998 catch, were more abundant and of a larger size than commonly found in lakes of Krans' class. Northerns ranged from 19.6 to 29.3 inches and averaged 3.5 pounds. Historical net catches sampled northern pike in low to moderate numbers. Bluegill sunfish abundance (89.3/net), also exceeded the normal range for the lake class and the 1998 catch rate. Bluegill ranged from 4 to 8.8 inches with a 5.3 inch average. Yellow perch numbers, well above normal in 1998, fell dramatically in the 2008 survey. The burgeoning northern pike population has likely impacted the perch abundance, especially given Krans' small size. The eight perch captured ranged from 5.4 to 10 inches in length. Although not present in the 1998 survey, in 2008 black crappie numbers were comparable to those in similar lakes. Crappies averaged 5.6 inches with no individuals exceeding 6.1 inches. Based on the current game fish abundance and composition, Krans Lake appears to have dodged winter oxygen problems long enough for the game fish population to evolve. Quality sized northern pike are now present. The bluegill abundance has increased but size has suffered only a little. Black crappie were present for the first time since the 1976 netting.

Krans Lake, located in Chisago and Isanti Counties, has a surface area of 42 acres and has been assigned to lake class 30. The lake is managed primarily for northern pike with bluegill sunfish, black crappie and largemouth bass as the secondary species.During the week of June 29, 1998, a lake survey was conducted on Krans Lake to determine the present status of the fish population. Sampling gear consisted of night electrofishing (May 21, 1998), three gill nets, six trap nets, and shoreline seining (Sept. 8, 1998).Northern pike were not sampled by any of the selected gear types during this survey. Historical net catches sampled northern pike in low to moderate numbers.Bluegill sunfish abundance was within the normal range for this type of lake. The average weight of 0.3 pounds was above normal with lengths ranging from 3.3 to 8.2 inches. Growth rates for bluegill in Krans Lake were well above normal for all ages when compared to statewide averages for lakes of this type.Night electrofishing was utilized for sampling largemouth bass on Krans Lake for the first time. No largemouth bass were sampled during electrofishing, however, one 9.1 inch largemouth was captured in a gill net and was determined to be two years old.The 1998 survey did not sample any black crappie and records indicate that black crappie have not been sampled since 1976.Yellow perch numbers were well above normal when compared to other lakes of this type. The average weight was 0.4 pounds, while lengths ranged from 4.8 to 11.9 inches with an average length of 9.0 inches.In addition to the above species, thirteen other species were collected during the 1998 survey and are as follows; black bullhead, white sucker, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish, pumpkinseed sunfish, golden shiner, blacknose shiner, brassy minnow, brook stickleback, central mudminnow, emerald shiner, fathead minnow, northern redbelly dace, and Johnny darter. The abundance of black bullhead was above normal, while white sucker numbers were at a normal level. Black bullhead lengths ranged from 4.8 to 9.7 inches with 86% of the captured fish measuring from 5 to 6 inches. Because Krans Lake has a history of occasionally undergoing some degree of winterkill and currently has high numbers of yellow perch, small black bullhead, and no northern pike, the lake has probably experienced a partial winterkill at sometime since the last survey.

BASED ON RESPECTIVE LOCAL MEDIANS THE PRESENT FISH POPULATION OF KRANS LAKE IS AS FOLLOWS: THE NORTHERN PIKE POPULATION WAS SLIGHTLY LOW AT 2.33 FISH PER GILLNET SET. LENGTH FREQUENCY RANGED FROM 19.0 TO 24.9 INCHES WITH A MEDIAN LENGTH OF 22.0 TO 22.9 INCHES AND A MEAN WEIGHT OF 2.64 PDS. GROWTH RATES OF THE FISH MEASURED (8) SHOWED AVG GROWTH AT ALL ANNULUS. THE YELLOW PERCH WAS VERY HIGH AT 63.33 PER SET AND HAVE SHOWN A REAL IN- CREASE OVER THE 1976 CATCH RATE OF 17.33 PER SET. MEDIAN LENGTH FOR THE YELLOW PERCH MEASURED (85) WAS 6.0 TO 6.4 INCHES. THE BLUEGILL SUNFISH AND THE PUMPKINSEED HAD LOW POPULATION FIGURES OF 5.25 AND 1.25 PER SET RESPECTIVELY. MEDIAN LENGTH FOR THE BLUEGILL WAS 6.5 TO 6.9 INCHES WHILE THE PUMPKINSEED WAS 5.0 TO 5.4 INCHES. THE HYBRID SUNFISH AT 6.50 PER SET WAS OVER 3 TIMES ITS LOCAL MEDIAN FIGURE OF 2.15 AND THE MEDIAN LENGTH WAS 6.0 TO 6.4 INCHES. THE BLACK BULLHEAD SHOWED AVG POPULATION FIGURES BUT WERE OF SMALL SIZE WITH A MEDIAN LENGTH OF 6.0 TO 6.4 INCHES. THE YELLOW AND BROWN BULLHEAD, WHITE SUCKER, GREEN SUNFISH, AND GOLDEN SHINER SHOWED LOW POPULATION FIGURES WHILE THE BOWFIN WAS SLIGHTLY HIGH.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Northern Pike, Green Sunfish, Pumpkinseed, Largemouth Bass, and Yellow Perch in Krans. 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 Krans. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for current access details before you go.

Krans has a maximum depth of 31 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Krans is from 2008. Surveys this old should be treated with some caution — fish populations change over time.

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