Big Pine

Big Pine Lake is a 4,730-acre mesotrophic (moderately fertile) lake located in northeastern Otter Tail County approximately three miles east of Perham, MN. Big Pine Lake is part of the Otter Tail River Watershed and is connected to Little Pine and Rush Lakes via the Otter Tail River. The Otter Tail River inlet is located along the northwest shoreline while the outlet is located along the west shoreline of the lake. The immediate watershed is composed primarily of mixed hardwoods. The maximum depth of Big Pine Lake is 76 feet; however, fifty percent of the lake is less than 15 feet in depth. Historical Secchi disk readings have ranged from 4.5 to 8.5 feet. The shoreline of Big Pine Lake has been extensively developed. Homes, cottages, and resorts compose the majority of the development. DNR owned concrete public water accesses are located along the northwest and southeast shorelines of the lake. A DNR owned earthen public water access is located along the north shoreline. The shoal water substrates consist primarily of sand and rubble. Stands of hardstem bulrush, common cattail, and wild rice are scattered along the entire shoreline of the lake; however, the largest stands are along areas that haven't been highly developed and are located on the east, west and south shorelines. Emergent aquatic plants such as bulrush, cattail, and wild rice provide valuable fish and wildlife habitat, and are critical for maintaining good water quality. Emergent plants provide spawning areas for fish such as Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, and panfish. They also serve as important nursery areas for all species of fish. Because of their ecological value, emergent plants may not be removed without a DNR permit. To maintain the excellent angling that this lake has to offer, it is imperative to preserve the quality of the aquatic habitat. A reduced daily limit of 5 crappie was instituted in 2025. The goal of this regulation is to maintain or improve the size structure of the Black Crappie population. A special spring boat electrofishing survey was conducted in 2025 to analyze the Black Crappie population and establish baseline demographics. Catch data indicate that Black Crappies are moderately abundant. The 2021-year class is strong and should provide consistently good Black Crappie angling for several years. Crappie recruitment is inconsistent, which can result in varying levels of abundance and changes in size structure over time. Fish sampled ranged in size from 8.6 to 14.4 inches in length, with an average length of 10.8 inches. Eighty-seven percent of the crappies were 10.0 inches or greater in length. Crappie growth rates are average, with a mean length of 10.6 inches at five years of age. Anglers can maintain the quality of angling in Big Pine Lake by practicing selective harvest. Selective harvest encourages the release of medium to large-size fish while allowing the harvest of the more abundant smaller fish for table fare. Releasing the medium to large fish will ensure that the lake will have enough spawning age fish on an annual basis and will provide anglers with more opportunities to catch large fish in the future. Big Pine Lake was listed as infested with zebra mussels in 2020. Aquatic invasive species are threatening Minnesota waters. The non-native fish species can potentially harm water quality, water recreation, aquatic habitat, native species, and fish populations. Anglers can help prevent the introduction and spread of invasive species by following watercraft transportation laws.

Big Pine Lake is a 4,730-acre mesotrophic (moderately fertile) lake located in northeastern Otter Tail County approximately three miles east of Perham, MN. Big Pine Lake is part of the Otter Tail River Watershed and is connected to Little Pine and Rush Lakes via the Otter Tail River. The Otter Tail River inlet is located along the northwest shoreline while the outlet is located along the west shoreline of the lake. The immediate watershed is composed primarily of mixed hardwoods. The maximum depth of Big Pine Lake is 76 feet; however, fifty percent of the lake is less than 15 feet in depth. The secchi disk reading during the 2023 survey was 6.7 feet. Previous secchi disk readings have ranged from 4.5 to 8.5 feet. The shoreline of Big Pine Lake has been extensively developed. Homes, cottages, and resorts compose the majority of the development. DNR owned concrete public water accesses are located along the northwest and southeast shorelines of the lake. A DNR owned earthen public water access is located along the north shoreline. The shoal water substrates consist primarily of sand and rubble. Stands of hardstem bulrush, common cattail, and wild rice are scattered along the entire shoreline of the lake; however, the largest stands are along areas that haven't been highly developed and are located on the east, west and south shorelines. Emergent aquatic plants such as bulrush, cattail, and wild rice provide valuable fish and wildlife habitat, and are critical for maintaining good water quality. Emergent plants provide spawning areas for fish such as Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, and panfish. They also serve as important nursery areas for all species of fish. Because of their ecological value, emergent plants may not be removed without a DNR permit. To maintain the excellent angling that this lake has to offer, it is imperative to preserve the quality of the aquatic habitat. Big Pine Lake is a popular angling lake. The lake has a reputation as one of the premier Walleye angling lakes in Otter Tail County. A special gillnetting assessment was conducted to analyze the Walleye and Northern Pike populations. Walleye abundance has historically been high in Big Pine Lake. Walleyes ranged in length from 7.3 to 26.9 inches with an average length and weight of 13.7 inches and 1.1 pounds. Age and catch data indicate that the 2020 and 2022 year classes are very strong and should provide excellent Walleye angling for several years. Age and catch data from recent lake surveys also indicate that Walleye natural reproduction is substantial enough to consistently sustain the Walleye population at or the above the DNR management objective. Walleyes attain an average length of 14.2 inches at four years of age. An experimental Walleye regulation was implemented on May 10, 2003. The regulation is an 18.0 to 26.0 protected slot limit with one Walleye over 26.0 inches allowed in possession. The intent of this regulation is to improve the size structure of the Walleye population in Big Pine Lake. Northern Pike are also abundant and reproduction appears to be consistently good. Northern Pike ranged in length from 15.0 to 28.9 inches with an average length and weight of 21.9 inches and 2.2 pounds. Pike exhibit fast growth rates with an average length of 24.9 inches at four years of age. Lake Sturgeon were sampled for the first time in Big Pine Lake during the 2017 survey. A Lake Sturgeon restoration plan for the Otter Tail River system began in 2002. Data from various surveys throughout the river system indicate that the restoration plan has been successful thus far. The DNR controlled Otter Tail River outlet dam was removed in 2023 and replaced with a rock-rapids structure. This will allow water levels to be maintained at historical levels and will also allow for the passage of fish species both upstream and downstream of Big Pine Lake. Anglers can maintain the quality of angling in Big Pine Lake by practicing selective harvest. Selective harvest encourages the release of medium to large-size fish while allowing the harvest of the more abundant smaller fish for table fare. Releasing the medium to large fish will ensure that the lake will have enough spawning age fish on an annual basis and will provide anglers with more opportunities to catch large fish in the future. Big Pine Lake was listed as infested with zebra mussels in 2020. Aquatic invasive species are threatening Minnesota waters. The non-native fish species can potentially harm water quality, water recreation, aquatic habitat, native species, and fish populations. Anglers can help prevent the introduction and spread of invasive species by following watercraft transportation laws.

Big Pine Lake is a 4,730-acre mesotrophic (moderately fertile) lake located in northeastern Otter Tail County approximately three miles east of Perham, MN. Big Pine Lake is part of the Otter Tail River Watershed and is connected to Little Pine and Rush Lakes via the Otter Tail River. The Otter Tail River inlet is located along the northwest shoreline while the outlet is located along the west shoreline of the lake. Minnesota DNR controlled dams at the outlets of Little Pine and Big Pine Lakes impede navigability between this chain of lakes. The immediate watershed is composed primarily of mixed hardwoods. The maximum depth of Big Pine Lake is 76 feet; however, fifty percent of the lake is less than 15 feet in depth. Historical secchi disk readings have ranged from 4.5 to 8.5 feet. The shoreline of Big Pine Lake has been extensively developed. Homes, cottages, and resorts compose the majority of the development. DNR owned concrete public water accesses are located along the northwest and southeast shorelines of the lake. A DNR owned earthen public water access is located along the north shoreline. The shoal water substrates consist primarily of sand and rubble. Stands of hardstem bulrush, common cattail, and wild rice are scattered along the entire shoreline of the lake; however, the largest stands are along areas that haven't been highly developed and are located on the east, west and south shorelines. Emergent aquatic plants such as bulrush, cattail, and wild rice provide valuable fish and wildlife habitat, and are critical for maintaining good water quality. Emergent plants provide spawning areas for fish such as Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, and panfish. They also serve as important nursery areas for all species of fish. Because of their ecological value, emergent plants may not be removed without a DNR permit. To maintain the excellent angling that this lake has to offer, it is imperative to preserve the quality of the aquatic habitat. A reduced daily bag limit regulation for sunfish (10 per day) was implemented in 2022. The objective of the regulation is to maintain the quality of the Bluegill size structure. A special spring trapnetting survey was conducted to collect baseline data on the Bluegill population, which will be used for regulation evaluation purposes in future surveys. The Bluegill population is moderately abundant and has a quality size structure. Age data indicate that Bluegill reproduction is consistently good. Fifty-two percent of the Bluegill sample was 7.0 inches or greater in length, while 29% was 8.0 inches or greater in length. Bluegills attain an average length of 8.6 inches at seven years of age. Anglers can also maintain the quality of angling by practicing selective harvest. Selective harvest encourages the release of medium to large-size fish while allowing the harvest of the more abundant smaller fish for table fare. Releasing the medium to large fish will ensure that the lake will have enough spawning age fish on an annual basis and will provide anglers with more opportunities to catch large fish in the future. Big Pine Lake was listed as infested with zebra mussels in 2020. Aquatic invasive species are threatening Minnesota waters. The non-native species can potentially harm water quality, water recreation, aquatic habitat, native species, and fish populations. Anglers can help prevent the introduction and spread of invasive species by following watercraft transportation laws.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Green Sunfish, Walleye, Black Crappie, Northern Pike, and Rock Bass in Big Pine. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

Big Pine has a maximum depth of 76 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Big Pine is from 2023.

Yes — Big Pine has confirmed zebra mussel. Clean, drain, and dry your equipment to avoid spreading invasives to other waters.