Loon

Loon Lake is a 738-acre class 43 lake with a maximum depth of 8 feet, located in Jackson County, approximately 10 miles south of the City of Lakefield near the Iowa-Minnesota border. The surrounding land use of Loon Lake is largely agricultural, resulting in nutrient rich, turbid water. Loon Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Yellow Perch, Black Crappie, and Northern Pike. Loon Lake has been stocked with Lower Mississippi Strain (LMS) Walleye since 2015 using 3 years out 4 rotations in an effort to get this strain established in additional waterbodies. LMS Walleye are present in Murray County's Lake Sarah, a lake that hasn't been stocked since 1991 because the Walleye population is sustained at high abundance through natural reproduction. Loon Lake was stocked with LMS Walleye because it has traditionally supported a good Walleye population and has historically had sporadic natural reproduction and thus likely has habitat for spawning walleye providing environmental conditions are conducive to natural reproduction. A natural reproduction check was conducted on October 9, 2024, to determine if natural reproduction occurred in Loon Lake. Young-of-the-year (YOY) Walleye were captured at a rate of 21.3 per hour, which indicates that natural reproduction occurred in Loon Lake in 2024. Analysis of fall electrofishing data has indicated that a catch rate of less than 20.0 per hour often does not produce a year class, and that a catch rate of more than 20.0 per hour may produce a strong year class but it's not certain. Walleye fingerlings ranged from 6.7 to 7.9 inches in length and averaged 7.2 inches. The 2020 genetic analysis of the naturally reproduced Walleye in Loon was found to be dominated by LMS (62%) and followed by Spicer strain (16%). Other strains accounted for 8 percent or less of the sample. With all Walleye reaching a size greater than 5 inches by fall of their first year, survival could be very good. Future monitoring of the Walleye population in Loon Lake with gillnetting in 2028 will determine the survival and success of the naturally produced 2024 year-class. Additionally, we verified the presence of Yellow Bass in Loon Lake. Although only 3 Yellow Bass were netted, it is proof that angler reported catches were accurate. Yellow Bass are present in high numbers upstream in Clear Lake as well as present downstream in Big Spirit Lake in Iowa. It will be interesting to see how the species assimilates into the Loon Lake fish community over time.

Loon Lake is a 738-acre class 43 lake with a maximum depth of 8 feet, located in Jackson County, approximately 10 miles south of the City of Lakefield near the Iowa-Minnesota border. The surrounding land use of Loon Lake is largely agricultural, often resulting in nutrient rich, turbid water. Historically, Loon Lake was susceptible to winterkill; however, severe winterkill events have rarely occurred in the last decade, with the most recent partial winterkill occurring during the winter of 2013 - 2014. Many lakes in the Windom Area experienced some partial winterkill during the winter of 2022-23. That was not documented or observed on Loon Lake during that winter. Loon Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Yellow Perch and Northern Pike. A survey was conducted the week of July 8, 2024, to monitor fish populations using three gill nets and 12 trap nets. Catch rates of Walleye in surveys on Loon Lake have ranged from 3.0 (1983) to 30.3 (2016) per gill net with a long-term average of 12.7 per gill net since 1983. The 2024 Walleye catch rate was 21.3 per gill net, which is the third highest observed catch rate, and the catch rate has exceeded the 75% quartile for the third consecutive survey in a row. Four-year classes of Walleye were sampled (2019, 2021, 2022, and 2023), all of which corresponded to years when stocking occurred. Targeted Sampling for Walleye in the fall of 2023 using electrofishing documented 142.0 Walleye per hour. Additionally, fin clips were taken to determine the percentage of Walleye that were stocked vs natural reproduction. With that said, natural reproduction has been documented in the past, so the habitat is available for potential success. The previous natural reproduction check when stocking did not occur was in 2020 and we documented 101.5 Age-0 Walleye per hour. Sixty-two percent of those fish were categorized as the strain of Walleye found in Lake Sarah in Murray County. Another 16 percent of those Walleye were categorized as Spicer strain. The take home message is there is habitat for Walleye natural reproduction, and we have documented it in the past. The strain composition of those naturally reproduced fish is quite high with Lake Sarah Walleye (LMS) genetics. In 2024, the Yellow Perch catch rate was 3.3 fish per gill net which is below the long-term average of 8.1 fish per gill net. The relative abundance basically matched the 25% quartile (2.7 fish/gill net) for class 43 lake. We suspect the relatively low Yellow Perch numbers since the late 1990s is likely a byproduct of a robust predator population (Walleye, Northern Pike, or Channel Catfish). The size of Yellow Perch sampled in gill nets ranged from 8.2 to 10.1 inches. So, while the numbers of Yellow Perch were not real abundant, the sizes of fish sampled were respectable and likely good broodstock for natural reproduction provided environmental conditions are favorable for a successful year class. The take home message is although the numbers of Yellow Perch are relatively low, the sizes of the fish are respectable for the angler. The 2024 Black Crappie catch rate of 4.2 per trap net was up slightly from the 2020 survey. Black Crappie lengths ranged from 4.5 to 13.9 inches and averaged 8.9 inches (PSD=66, PSD-P=32). Given the array of lengths of Black Crappie measured during the survey, it is safe to say there are multiple year classes and broodstock available for producing the next year class. Northern Pike anglers likely see a bright spot on catch rates on Loon Lake in 2024 and beyond. Seven Northern Pike were captured in gill nets during the 2024 survey with lengths ranging from 20.1 to 32.6 inches and averaging 23.8 inches. Although they need to 24 inches to harvest, their relative abundance numbers are encouraging. Since the last survey on Loon in 2020, Northern Pike have been stocked three separate years and amounted to 4,413 fall fingerlings. There is a high probability these fish have contributed to the fishery since the 2020 survey. The Black Bullhead catch rate remained relatively low given their historical trend. The catch rate of Black Bullhead in gill nets during the 2024 survey was 39 per gill net. While it is below the long-term average, the catch rate finally was above the 25% quartile (30.3 per gill net). Lengths of Black Bullheads ranged from 5.0 to 13.6 inches and averaged 8.1 inches. The trajectory of Common Carp relative abundance remains low. However, Bigmouth Buffalo trajectory in both trap nets and gill nets appears to be increasing. The 2024 Bigmouth Buffalo catch rate in gill nets was record high at 8.7 fish per gill net which is basically two-fold the previous survey in 2020. Other species sample included Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Freshwater Drum, Largemouth Bass, Shortnose Gar, White Bass, and White Sucker. During fall electrofishing, we documented the presence of Yellow Bass in Loon Lake. Although no Yellow Bass were sampled during the netting survey, we believe their relative abundances at the time of the survey were low.

Loon Lake is a 738-acre class 43 lake with a maximum depth of 8 feet, located in Jackson County, approximately 10 miles south of the City of Lakefield near the Iowa-Minnesota border. The surrounding land use of Loon Lake is largely agricultural, resulting in nutrient rich, turbid water. Loon Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Yellow Perch, Black Crappie, and Northern Pike. Loon Lake has been stocked with Lower Mississippi Strain (LMS) Walleye from 2015 through 2023 (not 2020), in an effort to get this strain established in additional waterbodies. LMS Walleye are present in Murray County's Lake Sarah, a lake that hasn't been stocked since 1991 because the Walleye population is sustained at high abundance through natural reproduction. Loon Lake was stocked with LMS Walleye because it has traditionally supported a good Walleye population and has historically had sporadic natural reproduction and thus likely has habitat for spawning walleye providing environmental conditions are conducive to natural reproduction. A stocking evaluation was conducted on October 2, 2023, using daytime boat electrofishing, to determine if the Walleye fry stocking was successful at Loon Lake. Young-of-the-year (YOY) Walleye were captured at a rate of 142.0 per hour, which indicates that the Walleye fry stocking was successful, natural reproduction occurred, or a combination of the two occurred in Loon Lake in 2023. Analysis of fall electrofishing data has indicated that a catch rate of less than 20.0 per hour often times does not produce a year class, and that a catch rate of more than 20.0 per hour may produce a strong year class but it's not certain. Walleye fingerlings ranged from 6.6 to 10.1 inches in length and averaged 8.4 inches. Interestingly, Walleye lengths were bimodal with a group of fish being 6.5 to 8.5 inches and the others being 8.5 to 10.5 inches. A subsample of Walleye were aged and were confirmed to be age-0, regardless of size. It could be speculated that the different sizes may be the difference between stocked and unstocked Walleye. Fin clips were taken to determine the percentage of stocked Walleye in the 2023 year class.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Bluegill, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, Yellow Perch, and Walleye in Loon. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

Loon has a maximum depth of 8 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

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

Yes — Loon has confirmed bighead carp and silver carp. Clean, drain, and dry your equipment to avoid spreading invasives to other waters.