Pokegama

Pokegama Lake is a 1,474-acre lake located west of Pine City and is within the Snake River watershed. It has a maximum depth of 25 feet, has an average depth of 9.8 feet, and is 61% littoral (depths less than 15 feet, 903 acres). It has two inlets, Pokegama Creek in the north and one unnamed inlet flowing into Jarvis Bay from the southwest. It has two outlets, both at the southern end that flow into the Snake River. The lake is highly developed, with homes lining almost 100% of the shoreline. Phosphorous levels are high, with algae blooms commonly occurring from May through October. Aquatic vegetation is dense in the north and southwest bays but generally sparse in the main lake due to water clarity limiting plant growth to depths less than 5 feet. Sand and gravel are common throughout most of the lake which provides good spawning substrates for crappie and bluegill. There are two public accesses on the lake, both with concrete boat ramps. The northern access has a gravel parking lot that accommodates 8 rigs, while the southern access has a gravel parking lot that accommodates 12 rigs. Walleye fry were stocked into Pokegama Lake on May 3, 2025. The stocking rate was 250 fry per littoral acre (903 acres) which equals 226,000 fry. The fry were LMS (Lower Mississippi Strain), a local genetic strain sourced from the Knife River in April. Pokegama Lake was electrofished on the night of October 15, 2025 to evaluate the relative abundance of juvenile Walleye. The water temperature was 58°F. Nine 10-minute stations were sampled. These stations were established in the fall of 2025 to conform with standardized statewide protocols. The 2025 age-0 walleye catch rate of 42/hour in 2025 was higher than the lake average of 9/hr. The average catch rate of LMS stocked years is 23/hour, while the average of non-LMS stocked years is 4/hour. We attempted to net all walleye observed. Age-1 and older Walleye were sampled at a rate of 28/hour. Age-2 Walleye were most frequently sampled and ranged in length from approximately 11.5 to 14.5 inches. The possibility of natural Walleye reproduction makes the fry stockings contribution to the Walleye year classes unknown.

Pokegama Lake is a 1,474-acre lake located west of Pine City and is within the Snake River watershed. It has a maximum depth of 25 feet, has an average depth of 9.8 feet, and is 61% littoral (depths less than 15 feet, 903 acres). It has two inlets, Pokegama Creek in the north and one unnamed inlet flowing into Jarvis Bay from the southwest. It has two outlets, both at the southern end that flow into the Snake River. The lake is highly developed, with homes lining almost 100% of the shoreline. Phosphorous levels are high, with algae blooms commonly occurring from May through October. Aquatic vegetation is dense in the north and southwest bays but generally sparse in the main lake due to water clarity limiting plant growth to depths less than 5 feet. Sand and gravel are common throughout most of the lake which provides good spawning substrates for crappie and Bluegill. There are two public accesses on the lake, both with concrete boat ramps. The northern access has a gravel parking lot that accommodates 8 rigs, while the southern access has a gravel parking lot that accommodates 12 rigs. Past standard lake surveys of Pokegama Lake have occurred in July and consistently observed a low-density Bluegill population with some larger individuals over 9 inches present. Two previous surveys targeting spawning Bluegill occurred in 2019 and 2021, to evaluate if a special regulation was appropriate. Due to interest in quality size Bluegill and the results of these two surveys, a ten sunfish bag limit was initiated in 2022 to help maintain size quality. In 2025, a survey targeting spawning Bluegill was conducted using 12 trap nets set over 7 days (82 net nights, 2 nets were collapsed due to wind and not counted) to evaluate the current Bluegill population and examine for changes that may have occurred since special regulations were implemented. Initial sampling occurred May 19 - 23, 2025 when water temperatures were 62 °F degrees and warming, but a rapid drop in water temperatures to 52 °F limited Bluegill movement and net effectiveness. Consequently, additional sampling occurred June 3 - 6, 2025 just prior to Bluegill spawning as water temperatures warmed again (range 68-71 °F). A total of 401 Bluegill were caught in 2025 for a catch rate of 4.9/net. This is similar to the catch rate of 4.3/net in 2019, but below the catch rate of 12.5/net in 2021. Bluegill lengths ranged from 3.2 to 10.8 inches with an average length of 7.7 inches. This is similar to the average length in 2019 (7.9 inches), but much greater than the average length in 2021(6.4 inches). Forty percent of Bluegill caught in 2025 exceeded 8 inches, compared to 33% in 2019 and 30% in 2021. Overall, Pokegama appears to continue to support a low-density Bluegill population with good size structure. Other species sampled in 2025 included Black Crappie, white crappie, and pumpkinseed. A total of 394 Black Crappie were caught for a catch rate of 4.8/net. Lengths ranged from 2.8 to 12.8 inches with an average length of 10.3 inches. Sixty-eight percent of Black Crappie caught in 2025 exceeded 10 inches. Only Bluegills were counted and measured in the 2019 and 2021 surveys, so comparisons to other surveys cannot be made. In 2025, a total of 23 white crappie were caught for a catch rate of 0.3/net. Lengths ranged from 9.6 to 12.7 inches with an average length of 11.0 inches. A total of 53 pumpkinseed were caught for a catch rate of 0.7/net. Lengths ranged from 0.7 to 7.5 inches with an average of 6.2 inches.

Pokegama Lake is a 1,474-acre lake in southern Pine County located three miles northwest of Pine City, MN, and is within the Snake River Watershed. The lake has a maximum depth of 25 ft and 61% of the lake is 15 feet or less (903 littoral acres). Walleye fry were stocked into Pokegama Lake on May 4, 2024. The stocking rate was 250 fry per littoral acre which equals 226,000 fry. The fry were LMS (Lower Mississippi Strain), a local genetic strain sourced from the Knife River in April. Pokegama Lake was electrofished on the night of October 28, 2024 to evaluate the relative abundance of juvenile Walleye. Only three of the six 20-minute stations were sampled due to a boat issue but catch rates and juvenile size distribution was consistent between sampled stations. The catch rate of age-0 Walleye (14/hour) was above the long-term average (5/hr) and similar to 2023 (11/hr). The age-0 Walleye ranged from 6.4 to 10.0 inches in length with an 8.5-inch average. Age-1 Walleye were sampled at a rate of 3.3 per hour. Age-1 Walleye ranged in length from 11.3 to 12.8 inches and had a 11.8-inch average. The possibility of natural Walleye reproduction makes the fry stockings contribution to the Walleye year classes unknown.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Channel Catfish, Black Crappie, Muskellunge, Northern Pike, and White Crappie in Pokegama. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

Pokegama has a maximum depth of 25 feet and a mean depth of 9.8 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

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

Yes — Pokegama has confirmed Eurasian watermilfoil. Clean, drain, and dry your equipment to avoid spreading invasives to other waters.