Yankton

Yankton Lake is a 387-acre lake located in the City of Balaton in Lyon County. Yankton Lake has a maximum depth of 8.0 feet, and a watershed-to-lake ratio of 3 to 1. Despite having a small watershed and being the start of the West Fork of the Des Moines Watershed, Yankton Lake's water quality has typically been poor with Secchi depth's less than 1.0 ft., heavy algae blooms, and turbid water throughout much of the year. Water clarity improved in 2022 as the Secchi depth was 1.8 ft. during the survey, and clearer water was observed throughout much of the year, resulting in aquatic vegetation being present throughout much of the lake. Yankton Lake suffered a substantial partial winterkill during the winter of 2018-2019, as several species of dead fish were observed in the aeration hole and after ice out. It should be noted and known that the winter aeration system was in operation and running during the process of winterkill. While the number of species in the lake was not affected, the kill reduced the relative abundances of most species of fish. Yankton Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Northern Pike, Crappie, and Yellow Perch. Yankton Lake has been stocked with Lower Mississippi Strain (LMS) Walleye fry since 2017 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. Yankton 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 10, 2025, to determine if natural reproduction occurred in Yankton Lake. Young-of-the-year (YOY) Walleye were captured at a rate of 77.3 per hour, which indicates that natural reproduction occurred in Yankton Lake in 2025. Analysis of fall electrofishing data by DNR staff indicated that a catch rate greater than 5 per hour can result in a successful year class and greater than 25 per hour often produces a year class. Therefore, potential exists for a strong year class from the 2025 natural reproduction in Yankton Lake. Walleye fingerlings ranged from 6.1 to 9.1 inches in length and averaged 7.1 inches. With Walleye reaching a size greater than 5 inches by fall of their first year, survival should be very good. Future monitoring of the Walleye population in Yankton Lake with gillnetting in 2026 will determine the survival and success of the naturally produced 2025 year-class.

Yankton Lake is a 387-acre lake, located in the City of Balaton in Lyon County. Yankton Lake has a maximum depth of 8.0 feet, and a watershed-to-lake ratio of 3 to 1. Despite having a small watershed and being the start of the West Fork of the Des Moines Watershed, Yankton Lake's water quality has typically been poor with Secchi depth's less than 1.0 ft. and heavy algae blooms and turbid water throughout much of the year. Water clarity improved in 2022 as the Secchi depth was 1.8 ft. during the survey, and clearer water was observed throughout much of the year, resulting in aquatic vegetation being present throughout much of the lake. The increased water clarity and aquatic vegetation response is a common occurrence following a significant partial winterkill. Yankton Lake suffered a substantial partial winterkill during the winter of 2018-2019, as several species of dead fish were observed in the aeration hole and after ice out. While the number of species in the lake was not affected, the kill reduced the abundances of most species of fish. Yankton Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Northern Pike, Crappie, and Yellow Perch. A standard survey was conducted during the week of June 18, 2022 to monitor fish populations using three gill nets and nine trap nets. Prior to the 2018-2019 winterkill, Yankton Lake's Walleye abundance was the highest that had ever been recorded at 40.3 per gill net in the 2018 survey. The Walleye population was hit pretty hard by the winterkill, as the catch rate in the 2019 winterkill check was 2.0 per gill net. It appears that restocking efforts (2019 and 2021 fry) have been effective, as Walleye were captured at a rate of 16.0 per gill net in the 2022 standard survey, which is near the long-term average of 17.0 per gill net and is within the expected range of catch rates for similar lakes (2.3 to 18.1 per gill net). Two year classes of Walleye were sampled (2019 and 2021) which correspond to stocked years of Lower Mississippi River Strain Walleye (Sarah strain Walleye). Age-3 Walleye, which were stocked the spring immediately after the partial winterkill, accounted for 96 percent of the sample. Walleye lengths ranged from 10.1 to 19.8 inches and averaged 17.9 inches. Mean length at age-3 was 18.2 inches which is incredibly fast growth when compared to similar lakes. Walleye were plump suggesting that there is plenty of food available for them. The 2019 year class should provide good angling in Yankton Lake. The 2022 Northern Pike catch rate was 0.0 per gill net, the lowest catch rate ever recorded since 1985 and below the long-term average of 2.4 per gill net. Three Northern Pike were sampled in trap nets, with lengths of 20.9 inches, 24.1 inches, and 26.1 inches. Northern Pike fingerlings were last stocked in 2019 (N=194). Yankton Lake is within the "southern zone" of the Northern Pike zone regulations, so two Pike longer than 24 inches can be harvested. Northern Pike under 24 inches must be released. Since 1985, Yellow Perch catch rates in Yankton Lake have averaged 23.0 per gill net, ranging from 2.6 per gill net in 1990 to 39.0 per gill net in 2018. In 2022, the Yellow Perch catch rate was 82.3 per gill net, the highest catch rate ever recorded in Yankton Lake, and greatly exceeded the expected range of catch rates for similar lakes (2.7 to 25.0 per gill net). It is highly probable that the aquatic vegetation response enable good nursery and spawning habitat for the Yellow Perch. Lengths of Yellow Perch ranged from 4.8 to 11.1 inches and averaged 7.6 inches. Yellow Perch are plump and foraging successfully. The Yellow Perch in Yankton Lake should provide a good angling opportunity in the near future. Black Crappie catch rates have been highly variable in Yankton Lake, ranging from 0.4 per gill net in 1990 to 49.3 per gill net in 2002 averaging 10.6 per gill net since 1985. In 2022, the Black Crappie catch rate was 1.3 per gill net, below the expected range of catch rates for similar lakes (1.4 to 13.8 per gill net). Black Crappie can be highly susceptible to low dissolved oxygen, so the population likely took a hit during the last winterkill. Adult Black Crappie were stocked in 2020 by the Red Rock Sportsman's Club, but were not sampled effectively during the 2022 survey. Lengths of Black Crappie ranged from 5.8 to 12.1 inches and averaged 8.0 inches. It is possible the highly abundant Yellow Perch is filling the niche and outcompeting Black Crappie given the habitat change since 2019. The Black Bullhead catch rate in 2022 was 57.7 per gill net, which is near the long-term average of 57.0 per gill net since 1985. Black Bullhead lengths ranged from 0.8 to 12.8 inches and averaged 7.7 inches. The Common Carp catch rate was 3.0 per trap net, which is the same as the long-term average. Other species sampled included Bigmouth Buffalo, Bluegill, Green Sunfish, White Sucker, and Yellow Bullhead.

Yankton Lake is a 387-acre, class 43 lake, located in the City of Balaton in Lyon County. Yankton Lake has a maximum depth of 8.0 feet, and a watershed-to-lake ratio of 3-to-1. Despite having a small watershed and being the start of the West Fork of the Des Moines Watershed, Yankton Lake's water quality is poor with a Secchi disk reading of 1.0 ft during the last survey in 2018. Additionally, Yankton Lake typically experiences heavy algae blooms and turbid water throughout much of the year. Yankton Lake is managed primarily for Walleye and secondarily for Northern Pike, Crappie, and Yellow Perch. Dissolved oxygen levels were at 4.0-4.4 parts per million from early to late February 2019, then they decreased further to 0.02 parts per million in mid-March. Dissolved oxygen below 3.0 parts per million is stressful to fish and lower values can result in death. Following the low dissolved oxygen period, a winterkill was observed during late winter 2019 when many Common Carp, Walleye, Yellow Perch, and other species were observed dead in the aeration open water. Electrofishing was conducted September 16, 2019 to monitor the Walleye restocking effort after the winterkill. Following the winterkill, 193,500 lower Mississippi strain Walleye fry were stocked. To monitor the success of the Walleye fry stocking, fall electrofishing was conducted around the shoreline for 30 minutes. Seventy eight Walleye were sampled that were from the stocking. The extrapolated catch rate was 156 per hour. Walleye that were measured (N=38) ranged in length from 5.0 to 8.4 inches with an average length of 6.1 inches. If a fall electrofishing catch rate for Walleye is less than 20 per hour then the change of producing a year class is extremely low. Therefore, a catch rate of 156 per hour indicates a catch rate that could result in a strong year class. Additionally, the growth of the Walleye was good with an average length of 6.1 inches. There is strong evidence in Minnesota that a Walleye that is larger than 5 inches by winter will have an excellent chance of survival. So, all signs point toward the Walleye stocking being successful in 2019. Walleye will be stocked again in the spring of 2020 and the spring of 2021 to continue to re-establish the population. Fishing for Walleye could start to be good during the late winter and spring of 2021.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Yellow Perch, Walleye, Largemouth Bass, Black Crappie, and Green Sunfish in Yankton. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

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

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

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