Eagles Nest #3

Eagles Nest 3 (69-0285-03) is a 1,028-acre lake located 8 miles east of Tower. It is accessed by a concrete ramp off the Eagles Nest 3 access road which is off the Bear Head Lake State Park Road. A state park vehicle permit is required to launch and park at this access. The lake has a maximum depth of 49 feet and had light green colored water at the time of this survey due to a slight algae bloom. On August 18, 2025 the lake was thermally stratified with a surface temperature of 70 degrees F and a bottom temperature of 46 degrees F. Oxygen levels were adequate for gamefish to 26 feet where the temperature was 58 degrees F. Lake bottom substrates along the shoreline are mostly bedrock, gravel, and sand with some muck in the bays. Aquatic vegetation is sparse due to a rusty crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) infestation. One hundred forty-three walleye were sampled in gill nets for a catch rate of 15.9 fish/net, which was very good compared to other similar lakes and the 2nd highest gill net catch rate on record for the lake. Walleye lengths ranged from 7 to over 22 inches with an average of nearly 13 inches. Walleye growth was considered average with four-year-old fish measuring just under 14 inches. Ages ranged from 0 to 14 years. Although still early, the age-1, 2024 year-class, appeared very strong and should provide good angling opportunities into the future. Presently, the 2021 and 2022 year-classes seem to be doing well. As of this survey, there was a fair number of younger fish in the lake. Although anglers may find an abundance of what appear to be small sized fish, as those year-classes age, catch rates of larger sized fish should improve. Spring night electrofishing was used to assess smallmouth and largemouth bass population. The lake was electrofished the night of May 28. No largemouth were sampled but 47 smallmouth were captured for a catch rate of 35.2 fish/hour, which was the highest catch rate on record for the lake. Lengths ranged from 6 to 20 inches with an average of nearly 15 inches. Thiry-four additional smallmouth were sampled in gill nets and six more were caught in trap nets. Those sizes ranged from 7.5 to just over 19 inches. Growth rates were very good with the average smallmouth reaching nearly 12 inches by four years old. The northern pike gillnet catch rate was 0.4 fish/net which was the lowest on record for the lake. Only four fish were sampled, however they were all of good size ranging from 26 to 40 inches. Eight additional pike were sampled in trap nets. Sizes were generally good here as well with fish up to 30 inches in the catch. Eagles Nest 3 has not been typically not thought of as a northern pike destination fishery. Numbers are generally low, but sizes can be decent. The bluegill trapnet catch was 1.5 fish/net which was low compared to other similar lakes and shows a continued decline since around the year 2000. This drop was likely due to a decrease in vegetation and other available habitat due to rusty crayfish. Sizes of bluegill in 2025 ranged from 3 to 9 inches with an average of 6 inches. Small mesh gill nets were set to monitor invasive rainbow smelt presence in downstream Eagles Nest 1 and 2 lakes. In seven surveys since 1984, the only smelt ever caught were three fish in 2005. These nets however did catch a considerable number of small yellow perch in 2025, with a catch rate of 48.0/net. Rusty crayfish have been in Eagles Nest 3 since at least 1987. The 2025 gillnet catch rate was 54.4 crayfish/net which was lowest since the 1990 survey. Rusty crayfish numbers appear to quite variable across the survey years.

Eagles Nest 3 is a 1,028 acre lake located eight miles east of Tower. It is accessed by a concrete ramp off the Eagles Nest 3 access road off the Bear Head Lake State Park Road. A state park vehicle permit is required to launch and park at this access. The lake has a maximum depth of 49 feet and had light green colored water at the time of this survey due to a slight algae bloom. On August 10, 2020 the lake was thermally stratified with a surface temperature of 73 F and a bottom temperature of 49 F. Oxygen levels were adequate for gamefish to 28 feet where the temperature was 60 degrees. Lake bottom substrates along the shoreline are mostly bedrock, gravel, and sand with some muck in the bays. Aquatic vegetation is sparse due to the rusty crayfish infestation. The overall gillnet catch rate for all fish combined was 25.9 fish/net which was above average compared to past surveys on the lake. Yield was 30.0 lbs/net which was slightly below average. Fish species sampled were walleye, white sucker, rock bass, northern pike, smallmouth bass, and yellow perch. Trap nets caught fish at an overall rate of 11.3 fish/net which was right at the lakes historic average. Yield was 10.0 lbs/net which was slightly better than normal for Eagles Nest 3. The only additional species sampled in trap nets, that weren't also observed in gill nets, were bluegill and largemouth bass. One hundred seventy-three walleye were sampled in gill nets for a catch rate of 19.2 fish/net, which was well above average compared to other similar lakes and the highest gill net catch rate on record for the lake. This catch rate was also very good compared to other walleye populations in area lakes. Walleye lengths ranged from 7.5 to 26 inches with an average of nearly 13 inches. Walleye growth was better than average with four year old fish averaging better than 14 inches. Ages ranged from 0 to 16 years with the 2017, 2018, and 2019 year class representing just over 75% of the catch. Spring night electrofishing was used to assess smallmouth and largemouth bass. The lake was electofished the night of June 16th. No largemouth were sampled but forty-six smallmouth were captured for a catch rate of 28.5 smallmouth bass/hour, which was the highest catch rate on record for the lake and very good compared to other smallmouth lakes in the area. Lengths ranged from 6 to 18.5 inches with an average of just over 13 inches. Eight additional smallmouth were sampled in gill nets and five more were caught in trap nets. Those sizes ranged from 7 to over 19 inches. Growth rates were very good with the average smallmouth reaching over 12 inches by four years old. Not all fish were aged, but the largest fish was aged to an astounding 25 years old. This was likely the oldest smallmouth aged to date in the state. The northern pike gillnet catch rate was 1.0 fish/net which was average compared to past surveys on the lake. The average weight was over four pounds which was very good compared to other similar lakes. Lengths ranged from 22 to over 32 inches with an average of nearly 27 inches. These sizes were similar to recent past surveys on Eagles Nest 3. The bluegill trapnet catch was 1.5 fish/net which was low compared to other similar lakes and shows a continued decline since around the year 2000. This drop was likely due to a decrease in vegetation and other available habitat due to rusty crayfish. Sizes of bluegill in 2020 ranged from 4 to 9 inches with an average of nearly 6 inches. Small mesh gills nets were set to monitor for invasive rainbow smelt present in downstream Eagles Nest 1 and 2 lakes. In six surveys since 1984, the only smelt ever caught were three fish in 2005. These nets did catch a considerable amount of small yellow perch in 2020 however at 41.5/net. Rusty crayfish have been in Eagles Nest 3 since at least 1987. The 2020 catch rate was 158.9 crayfish/net which was the second highest catch rate on record for the lake.

Eagles Nest Lake 3 (EN3) is located approximately 9 miles NE of Tower. EN3 is similar to the other Eagles Nest Lakes and is moderately developed with homes and cabins. The boundaries of Bear Head Lake State Park include a portion of EN3 near the SE side. There is a public access with a concrete planked boat ramp located near the SE end that is also within the park and a park sticker must be purchased to use this landing. Boaters should use caution on EN3 with a number of shallow rock reefs being present, most of which are unmarked. There have been changes occurring to the aquatic community of EN3 as indicated by the results of the last several surveys. In 2015, the fish community was sampled by gill nets, trap nets, smelt gill nets and night electrofishing targeting bass. Walleye were the most common species sampled in the gill nets (38%) even though the catch was the lowest since the 1995 survey. However, smallmouth bass numbers in the electrofishing sample were at a record high in 2015. Smelt and rusty crayfish are non-native species that were likely unintentionally introduced as bait in the Eagles Nest chain. Smelt spawn in the outlet of EN3 where the fish run upstream from Eagles Nest 2. Since 1984, there has been only year smelt were sampled in Eagles Nest 3. Three smelt were caught in 2005. Rusty crayfish numbers in 2015 were below the historic average and have been declining since the peak of 247.0/gill net in 2000. The lake has experienced a loss of submerged aquatic vegetation from the high population of rusty crayfish and it appears that the some of the fish community has suffered from this loss of habitat. Walleye abundance in 2015 was average for all surveys on this lake and higher than the average of 5.0/gill net for similar type lakes. The average walleye sampled was 14 inches long and about 4 years old. The largest walleye sampled was nearly 29 inches long. Approximately eighty-one percent of the walleye sampled were between the ages of 1 and 5. All walleye on EN3 are due to natural reproduction. Crayfish were observed in some of the walleye stomach samples. Smelt would typically be found in walleye stomachs if present also and this has not been observed. Five other species were sampled in the gill nets in 2015 including smallmouth bass, northern pike, yellow perch, rock bass and white sucker. Northern pike numbers were below average, however the average length of 27 inches was above average and the largest pike sampled was nearly 40 inches in length. Rock bass was the most common species sampled from the trap nets in 2015. Only one bluegill was sampled and this species has been declining in abundance since the 2000 survey when over 400 bluegill were sampled in the trap nets. Similarly, neither black crappie nor pumpkinseed have been sampled since the early 2000's. The rusty crayfish population peak coincided with a dramatic decrease in submerged aquatic plant abundance likely contributing to the observed changes in the panfish community. Smallmouth bass abundance based on electrofishing was well above the historic average of 13.4/hr. The average smallmouth sampled was almost 14 inches long which is larger than the historic average length of 11 inches. Smallmouth were sampled up to 20 inches long. Largemouth bass were also sampled by electrofishing. Largemouth numbers were much lower than the historic average of 5.8/hr. The average largemouth sampled was 15 inches which is larger than the average of 12 inches. The biggest largemouth sampled was almost 20 inches long.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, and Rock Bass in Eagles Nest #3. 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 Eagles Nest #3. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for current access details before you go.

Eagles Nest #3 has a maximum depth of 49 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Eagles Nest #3 is from 2025.

No invasive species are on record for Eagles Nest #3 in Minnesota DNR data. Always clean, drain, and dry your equipment to help keep it that way.