High Island

High Island is a moderate to large sized lake (1,340 acres) located adjacent to the Town of New Auburn in Sibley County. It has over sixteen miles of shoreline, with a maximum depth of seven feet. The public boat access is located on the west shore. High Island occasionally suffers partial winterkills of fish during harsh winters, with the latest event occurring in 2023. Fish populations can fluctuate widely depending on severity and frequency of winterkill. Milder winters in recent decades, with decreased winterkill of fish events, have led to increased boom-and-bust angling opportunities at this lake. Drawdown restoration efforts have been used in recent years to restore submergent and emergent vegetation and improve the lake's water quality. The lake has also been used as a Walleye Rearing Pond. When used as a rearing pond, Walleye fry are stocked in the spring and fingerlings are harvested in the fall, if present. Harvested Walleye are typically stocked into various lakes across the region. Since not all the fingerlings are ever removed, anglers can catch carry-over adult Walleye between years of winterkill. Submergent vegetation can be dense in the summer and early fall at this lake, making angling and boating difficult. A targeted survey (August trap netting) was conducted at High Island Lake on August 28th, 2025, as part of a Walleye Rearing Pond check, to see if fingerlings were present in good enough numbers to justify trying to harvest them. Of interest, duck hunting was reported to be quite good in 2023, when the lake refilled with water following several years of drawdown, drought and outlet dam replacement efforts. Fair numbers of young of the year Walleye (mostly 7 inches long) were present, but not enough were captured to warrant harvest operations. Those small Walleye could be harvestable in a couple of years if fish survive and continue to grow at a good rate. Net catches indicated that there were currently low numbers of keeper-sized Walleye (14 inches long) also present at High Island Lake. Additional fish species captured in the trap nets included Black Bullhead (which dominated the catch), Bluegill, Common Carp, Common Shiner, Freshwater Drum, Green Sunfish, Orangespotted Sunfish, Shortnose Gar and White Sucker. Several of these species likely entered High Island Lake during recent spring flooding events of the adjacent High Island Creek. People can have significant impacts on lakes and the fish populations they support. Over harvest, lakeshore development, removal of shoreline vegetation, and introductions of invasive species can all adversely affect fish populations. Aquatic invasive species (AIS) are typically moved from infested to non-infested waters by anglers, boaters and lakeshore owners, and can adversely impact lakes and fish populations. To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants and animals from their watercraft and drain all lake water from their boat and bait buckets before leaving the lake. If you suspect an infestation of an invasive species in this lake, save a specimen and report it to a local MNDNR office. Additional information on all these topics can be found on the MNDNR website (www.dnr.state.mn.us) or by contacting the Hutchinson Area Fisheries office.

Minnesota DNR records list Walleye, Bluegill, and Green Sunfish for High Island, but none have a fishing-quality score yet — they may be recently stocked or have limited survey data. See the species list above.

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

High Island has a maximum depth of 6.5 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in High Island is from 2025.

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