Tanner

Tanner Lake is located about five miles east of Isabella and is 55 acres in size with a maximum depth of 9 feet. Access is one of three short carry down trails from USFS 172 (Wanless Road) although there is no pull off area for unloading gear. The best access is about 75 yards east of the Divide Lake access. Parking is available at the Divide Lake access or campground. Walleye became the primary management species in Tanner Lake in 2018 when annual fingerling stocking began. The 2022 gill net catch of 12/lift was higher than average compared to similar lakes. The average weight was 1.8 pounds, which is in the normal range compared to similar lakes. Both catch and average size exceeded management goals. The average length was 17.5 inches with the largest fish sampled measuring 21.5 inches. Survey results suggest the 2018 and 2019 fingerling stocking was successful with these fish currently providing anglers with good opportunities for Walleye 14 to 20 inches long. The Yellow Perch gill net catch of 27/lift is above average compared to other similar lakes. Most of the catch was between 5.5 and 7.3 inches with less than 4% greater than 10 inches. These results suggest the lake currently supports an abundant population of small perch with limited opportunities for angler harvest. Other important forage species sampled were White Sucker, Golden Shiner and Pearl Dace.

Tanner Lake has an area of 55 acres with a maximum depth of 8.5 feet and contains clear water with a slight green/brown tint. The lake is located five miles east of Isabella, across the Wanless Road from Divide Lake. There are three small access trails to the lake along the Wanless Road, but no designated parking area. People wanting to fish the lake should park at the Divide Lake access or campground. Back in the late 1980s and early 90s the lake was used as a Walleye rearing pond. The first two years with good success, but then the lake became inundated with Yellow Perch and rearing activity ceased in 1992 after three unproductive years. The west shoreline of the lake is in private ownership and there are five cabins present on the lake. The remainder of the shoreline is under federal ownership. Five Walleyes were sampled in gill nets for a catch rate of 1.7/net, which is near average for similar lakes in the area. The average length and weight were 20.8 inches and 3.5 pounds. The largest fish was 24 inches long and weighed 4.9 pounds. Three of the fish were age-5 and two were age-10, growth was much faster than average compared to other lakes in the area. It is a bit of a mystery how these fish got in Tanner Lake as there is no spawning habitat making natural reproduction very unlikely. There is a small connecting stream between Tanner and Dumbbell Lakes, but with the present culvert, fish passage is likely impossible. Aging data indicates that these fish may have been caught in Dumbbell Lake and illegally released into Tanner Lake. Comparing the annual growth of fish from Dumbbell with the growth of the fish from Tanner Lake, it was nearly identical up to age-3, when Walleye in Dumbbell Lake are around 11 inches long. After age-3, growth of the fish from Tanner made a huge increase, which could be the result of the abundant forage and lack of competition in Tanner Lake. The Yellow Perch gill net (41/net) and trap net (33.6/net) catch were way above average for similar lakes in the Finland area. The largest fish sampled was 12.5 inches long and weighed 0.7 pounds. However, only 4.5 percent of the catch were longer than 9 inches with the vast majority (90.4 percent) shorter than 7.5 inches. White Suckers were sampled in gill nets and trap nets in average numbers and size. Quarter inch mesh trap nets also sampled Golden Shiners and Pearl Dace.

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

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

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

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Tanner is from 2022.

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