Pennington

Pennignton is a 119 acre, clear lake with a maximum depth of 25 feet. With only a few homes and no public access the lake receives light fishing pressure. Little change is evident in the fishery since 1993. Northern pike provide good angling opportunity with an abundance typical of similar lakes. Pike averaged 21.6 inches and 2.1 pounds. Northerns over 30 inches were not sampled. Bluegill are very abundant but small. Of the 419 sampled in the trapnets, only 11 exceeded 7 inches. Black crappie and yellow perch populations appear low. Only 2 individuals of each species were caught. Largemouth bass are present in the lake but their abundance was not measured.

On June 28, 1993, a lake survey was conducted on Pennington Lake (lake class 37). Standard netting methods were used to evaluate the present fish population. Pennington Lake is managed for northern pike, largemouth bass, and panfish. Stocking has not taken place on this lake. Being a shallow lake on average and prone to winterkills, the lake does quite well in sustaining a natural population of fish. The outlet connection to the Groundhouse River can also provide a source of fish (via migration) during highwater periods. Northern pike abundance was normal for this lake type. Fish up to 31.7 inches were sampled. The average length was 21.5 inches and the average weight was 2.3 pounds. Ages 2-7 were sampled and their growth was typical of normal. Largemouth bass abundance was hard to assess with the given netting results. Typically a difficult fish to catch by netting, bass are better sampled by night electrofishing. Due to time constraints during the survey, electrofishing was not conducted. Of the bass that were sampled, one measured 19.5 inches weighing 4.2 pounds. Several were observed in the shallows by the survey crew. Shoreline seining captured 3 young-of-year bass which indicated some spawning success. Bluegill abundance was high with fish up to 8.1 inches taken. The average size was almost 5.0 inches. Many were sampled in the 6.0-7.0 inch range. In general, Pennington Lake has many bluegills but most of them tend to run small. Ages 2-8 were sampled and their growth was slower than normal. Black crappie abundance was low, but local residents report of good catches during the spring. Crappies up to 10.7 inches were sampled with an average size of 6.5 inches. Ages 2-7 were captured with growth being normal. Pennington Lake, not noted for its yellow perch, only produced 2 perch in the nets. The northern pike population most likely keeps perch numbers down, since perch are their primary source of food. Pumpkinseed abundance was very high. Although not as dominant as the bluegills, the pumpkinseeds manage to make up 1/3 of the sunfish population. They range from 3.1 to 8.1 inches averaging 5.2 inches. The remainder of the fish population consisted of black bullhead, bowfin (dogfish), and brown bullhead. The brown bullhead abundance level was fairly high with an average length of 11.0 inches. Black bullhead and bowfin levels were very low. Prepared by: Jack Lauer, Area Fisheries Specialist

COMPARED TO RESPECTIVE LOCAL MEDIANS, THE PRESENT FISH POPULATION STATUS IS AS FOLLOWS: THE NORTHRN PIKE WAS HIGH AT 4.50 PER SET WITH A COMBINED AVG WT AT 2.34 LBS. THE YELLOW PERCH WAS VERY LOW AT 2.50 PER SET. THE LARGEMOUTH BASS WAS ABSENT FROM THE TRAPNET BUT WAS PRESENT AT 0.50 IN THE GILLNET AND WAS ALSO TAKEN WHILE SHORELINE SEINING. THE BLUEGILL WAS QUITE HIGH AT 50.25 PER SET AND AT A SMALL TO FAIR SIZE WHILE THE PUMPKINSEED WAS LOW AT 3.00 AND WAS OF A SMALL AVG SIZE. THE BLACK CRAPPIE WAS VERY LOW AT 0.25 PER SET AND WAS NOT PRESENT IN THE NATURAL PRODUCTION SEINING RE- SULTS. THE YELLOW AND BROWN BULLHEADS HAD HIGH MEDIAN FIGURES OF 21.25 AND 9.75 PER SET RESPECTI- VELY WHILE THE BLACK BULLHEAD WAS VERY LOW AT 2.00 PER SET. THE BULK OF THE BULLHEAD POPULATION WAS OF A SMALL TO FAIR SIZE. THE WHITE SUCKER WAS ONLY PRESENT IN THE TRAPNET CATCH AT 0.50 PER SET. THE BOWFIN WAS SLIGHTLY HIGH AT 1.00 PER SET.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Bluegill, Black Crappie, and Pumpkinseed in Pennington. 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 Pennington. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for current access details before you go.

Pennington has a maximum depth of 25 feet and a mean depth of 6 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Pennington is from 2003. Surveys this old should be treated with some caution — fish populations change over time.

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