South Stanchfield

South Stanchfield Lake is a 398-acre lake in northwestern Isanti County located thirteen miles northwest of Cambridge, MN, and is within the Rum River watershed. The lake has a maximum depth of 17 feet and an average depth of 9 feet. The lake is 92% littoral (15 feet or less, 366 acres). The color of the water is green due to filamentous and blue-green algae, which results in water clarity of 2 to 4 feet. There are two inlets, one from Lesure Heath Lake to the south and one on the west side from wetlands. There is one outlet on the north that flows into North Stanchfield Lake and contains a dam with a two foot head. The low water clarity limits aquatic plant growth. Recent vegetation surveys found no plants at 61% of the 54 sample sites. Curly-leaf pondweed, a non-native species, is present and grows in a thick band around the entire lake from 3 to 5 feet. The depth of water at which dissolved oxygen levels limit fish presence (<5 ppm) can include all depths during both summer and winter, due to nutrient loading. Seven winterkills have occurred since the late 1980s. Fish migration from the Rum River during high flow events repopulates the lake. Substrates are primarily sand and silt. The lake is lightly developed with 15 homes but includes four farms. A small, shallow, gravel, DNR owned public access is located on the north end of the lake with parking for three rigs. South Stanchfield Lake has an average fishery for numerous species. Black Crappies have relatively high catch rates and fish over 10 inches are typically present. Largemouth Bass sampled electrofishing were low in number, but fish over 17 inches were present. Although Northern Pike are average in number, the average length was 25 inches and a 31-inch fish was sampled. Yellow Perch catch rates are relatively low; however, fish over 10 inches are present. The Bluegill catch rates have increased each of the past five surveys, although no fish over 8 inches have ever been sampled. The 2024 Black Crappie gillnet and trap net catches were relatively high in 2024 when compared with past surveys. The gill net catch was 18/net in 2024 and compares to the average of 5/net, while the trap net catch was 6/net in 2024 and compares to the average of 4/net. Crappie ranged in length from 4.9 to 8.9 inches and had an average length of 7.3 inches. Crappies over ten inches have been sampled in three of the past four surveys, while crappies over 12 inches were sampled in 1991. The population currently has an average proportion of fish over eight inches and a below average proportion of fish over ten inches. Nighttime electrofishing for Largemouth Bass was conducted in May of 2024 for the first time. In 2024, bass were sampled at a rate of 33/hour. This catch rate is relatively low when compared to similar area lakes. Only one Largemouth Bass has been sampled in previous surveys and winterkill investigations, which occurred in 1979. In 2024, bass ranged in length from 3.7 to 17.5 inches with a 9.1 inch average. Anglers can expect to catch low numbers of moderate sized bass. The population currently has an average proportion of fish over 12 and 15 inches. An average number of Northern Pike were sampled with gill nets during the 2024 survey (4.7/net), when compared with similar area lakes. Pike have been sampled in 4 of 6 surveys. The 20 pike sampled ranged from 14.1 to 31.4 inches and had a 25-inch average. The 31-inch pike sampled in 2024 was the largest ever sampled. Estimated ages from cleithra indicated nine year classes from age-1 through age-9 were present in 2024, with 42% being age-3. Consistent reproduction is present. The current population has an above average proportion of fish over 21 inches. Yellow Perch gill net catch rates have remained relatively low the past three surveys (8 to 19/net), when compared with the first three surveys (88 to 295/net). Catch rates in 2024 were 13/net, which compares to the average of 85/net. Perch ranged from 5.0 to 10.3 inches and had an average length of 7.0 inches in 2024. Perch over 10 inches have been sampled in 4 of 6 surveys. The current population has a below average proportion of fish over 8 inches. Although most perch are smaller than anglers prefer, they are the primary prey source for most gamefish targeted by anglers. The 2024 Bluegill trap net catch rate of 10/net was the highest observed. Bluegills had not been sampled prior to the 1980s, but trap net catches have slowly and consistently increased over the past 35 years. Past surveys and winterkill evaluations continue to demonstrate this; 1986 (0.3/net), 1991 (1/net), 2006 (4/net), 2018 (5/net), and 2024 (10/net). No Bluegills over 8 inches have ever been sampled. In 2024, Bluegill ranged from 0.6 to 7.3 inches with a 5.1 inch average. The current population has an average proportion of fish over 6 inches and a below average proportion of fish over 8 inches. Low numbers of Walleyes have been sampled in three of six surveys, with none being sampled the other three surveys. Three Walleyes were sampled in 2024, for a gill net catch rate of 0.5/net. Walleyes ranged in length from 12.6 to 13.9 inches and had an average length of 13.1 inches. No Walleyes were observed while electrofishing for Largemouth Bass. Potential reasons for consistently low Walleye numbers include warm summer water temperatures, and the high frequency of low oxygen levels in both summer and winter. Other species sampled included Black Bullhead, Bowfin (Dogfish), Brown Bullhead, Common Carp, Golden Shiner, Hybrid Sunfish, Pumpkinseed, White Sucker, and Yellow Bullhead.

Due to recent partial winterkills, the current fishery in South Stanchfield Lake has very little to interest most anglers. Both Bluegill and Black Crappie were small and low in abundance with respective average lengths of just 5.0 and 6.9 inches. Other species present in the trap nets were Common Carp, Black Bullhead, and Hybrid Sunfish.

SOUTH STANCHFIELD LAKE IS A SHALLOW FERTILE LAKE WHICH FREQUENTLY WINTERKILLS, MOST RECENTLY A PARTIAL WINTERKILL OCCURRED DURING THE WINTER OF 1988-89. DURING JULY OF 1991, SOUTH STANCHFIELD LAKE WAS SURVEYED WITH SIX GILLNETS, SIX TRAPNETS AND THREE SHORELINE AREAS WERE SEINED. THE FOLLOWING PARAGRAPHS DESCRIBE THE GAMEFISH POPULATIONS IN THE LAKE. SOUTH STANCHFIELD LAKE HAD ABUNDANT POPULATIONS OF BLB AND CAP WHICH IS COMMON IN FERTILE WINTERKILL LAKES. SPAWNING CONDITIONS WERE FAIR TO GOOD FOR PAN, LMB, AND NOP. WAE SPAWNING CONDITIONS WERE POOR. THE WAE NET CATCH (4.17/SET) WAS BETWEEN THE LAKE CLASS MEDIAN (2.67/SET) AND THE THIRD QUARTILE (5.00/ SET). ALL THE WAE CAPTURED WERE TWO YEARS OLD AND ORIGINATED FROM A FRY STOCKING DURING 1989. THE WAE RANGED IN LENGTH FROM 9.5 TO 19.9 INCHES WITH A MEDIAN LENGTH GROUP OF 13.0 TO 13.9 INCHES. BACK-CALCULATED LENGTHS INDICATED A NORMAL GROWTH RATE WHEN COMPARED TO STATEWIDE AVERAGES. THE AVERAGE WAE WEIGHT (1.16 POUNDS) WAS BELOW THE FIRST QUARTILE (1.43 POUNDS), BECAUSE ONLY TWO YEAR OLD FISH WERE CAPTURED. FOR A WAE FISHERY TO EXIST STOCKING MUST BE USED. WAE STOCKING HAS CONSISTED OF STOCKING FRY. HOWEVER, FRY STOCKING HAS NOT ALWAYS BEEN SUCCESSFUL IN SOUTH STANCHFIELD LAKE. DURING 1977, 200,000 FRY WERE STOCKED AND NONE WERE CAUGHT DURING THE LAKE SURVEY OF 1979, AND DURING 1971 430,000 FRY WERE STOCKED AND ONLY ONE WAS CAPTURED DURING A LAKE SURVEY IN 1974. NOP WERE NOT SAMPLED IN THE GILL- NETS AND ONLY FOUR WERE CAPTURED IN THE TRAPNETS (0.67/SET). THIS WAS EQUAL TO THE LAKE CLASS MEDIAN (0.67/SET). THE NOP RANGED IN LENGTH FROM 22.0 TO 27.9 INCHES AND AVERAGED 3.65 POUNDS (THIRD QUARTILE = 3.66 POUNDS). THE NOP WERE TWO AND THREE YEAR OLD FISH, AND BACK-CALCULATED LENGTHS INDICATED A FAST GROWTH RATE. LITTLE HAS CHANGED IN THE NOP POPULATION WITH REGARD TO NET CATCH AND FISH SIZE. THE BLC NET CATCH (2.17/SET) WAS LOW, BELOW THE FIRST QUARTILE (2.25/SET), BUT REMAINED RELATIVELY UNCHANGED FROM THE 1986 SURVEY (3.00/SET). THE BLC RANGED IN LENGTH FROM 5.0 TO 12.9 INCHES WITH MEDIAN LENGTH GROUP OF 9.5 TO 9.9 INCHES. BACK-CALCULATED LENGTHS INDICATED A NORMAL GROWTH RATE, BUT THE AVERAGE BLC WEIGHT (0.52 POUNDS) WAS ABOVE THE THIRD QUARTILE (0.34 POUNDS) FOR THE LAKE CLASS. THE LENGTH AND AVERAGE WEIGHT OF BLC HAVE REMAINED RELATIVELY UNCHANGED SINCE 1979. YOUNG OF THE YEAR (YOY) BLC WERE NOT CAUGHT DURING THE SURVEY. ALTHOUGH SPAWNING HABITAT WAS FAIR TO GOOD, HISTORICALLY THE BLG NET CATCH HAS BEEN LOW. BLG WERE FIRST SAMPLED DURING 1986, AND DURING 1991 THE NET CATCH (1.17/SET) WAS FAR BELOW THE FIRST QUARTILE (7.00/ SET). BLG RANGED IN LENGTH FROM 5.5 TO 7.4 INCHES WITH A MEDIAN LENGTH GROUP OF 6.0 TO 6.4 INCHES. BACK-CALCULATED LENGTHS INDICATED A NORMAL GROWTH RATE AND THE AVERAGE WEIGHT (0.24 POUNDS) WAS BETWEEN THE LAKE CLASS MEDIAN (0.20 POUNDS) AND THE THIRD QUARTILE (0.27 POUNDS). FIFTY-THREE YOY BLG WERE SEINED.

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

South Stanchfield has a maximum depth of 17 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in South Stanchfield is from 2024.

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