Spirit

Spirit Lake is located in Menahga in northern Wadena County. Spirit has a surface area of 114 acres and a maximum depth of 45 feet. A city owned public access is located on the northeast shore of the lake off 1st Street. Spirit provides angling opportunities for Largemouth Bass, panfish and Northern Pike. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Spirit is in class 29. Class 29 lakes generally have high littoral area and are regularly shaped. Other class 29 lakes in the work area include: Little Island, Mow, Mud, Palmer, and Tenth Crow Wing. Largemouth Bass were sampled in very high numbers again in 2022. They had an average length of 12.1 inches, with the longest sampled at 17.6 inches. Spirit provides good fishing for Bluegill and Pumpkinseed with fish anglers would target ranging from 6 - 8.5 inches. Crappies were sampled in average numbers compared to similar lakes, but higher than recent surveys for this lake. The average size of crappie was 7.4 inches with the largest at 10.8 inches. Yellow Perch were sampled in low numbers and too small for anglers to target. Northern Pike abundance was high and in line with the recent surveys. Anglers will find most northerns from 16 - 21 inches in length, with fish up to 31 inches sampled. Northern Pike sampled had an average length of 18.9 inches and weighed 1.3 pounds. Curley Leaf Pondweed, an Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) has been identified in Spirit Lake. To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the access.

Spirit Lake is located in Menagha, in northern Wadena County. Spirit has a surface area of 114 acres and a maximum depth of 45 feet. There is a city owned access, swimming beach and fishing pier on the east shore of the lake. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Spirit Lake is in lake class 29. Class 29 lakes generally have a high littoral area (depths less than 15 feet) and a regularly shaped shoreline. Other class 29 lakes in the Park Rapids area include: Cedar, Mirage, Mow, Palmer, and Tenth Crow Wing. Largemouth Bass were sampled by spring electrofishing. Abundance was in line with previous years, and on the high end compared to similar lakes. Bass were distributed across all sizes, showing a robust population. Bass had a good average size of 12.2 inches, with fish sampled up to 19.2 inches. Bluegill abundance was lower than recent samples of Spirit Lake, and low compared to similar lakes. Fish of all sizes were sampled from 2.4 to 9 inches, with an average size of 5.2 inches. Northern Pike abundance was in line with similar lakes, and past surveys for Spirit Lake. The average size was 18.4 inches and 1.3 pounds, down from previous surveys. There are still some large fish, with the largest sampled at 33.5 inches. Black Crappies abundance was similar to past surveys of Spirit Lake, and just below other similar lakes. The average size was 7.9 inches, and all fish were 6-8.8 inches. Curly-leaf Pondweed is an aquatic invasive species that has been identified in Spirit Lake. To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the access.

Spirit Lake is a small, 115 acre lake located in the town of Menahga in northern Wadena County. There is a city-owned public access, swimming beach, and a fishing pier located on the east shore of the lake. Spirit Lake provides angling opportunities for largemouth bass, northern pike, and panfish. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Spirit Lake is in lake class 29. Other area lakes in this same classification include: Cedar, Tenth Crow Wing, Mow, and Palmer. Spirit Lake supports a healthy largemouth bass population. Largemouth bass abundance was high during spring electrofishing (154 bass/hr). Sampled largemouth bass had an average length and weight of 12.4 inches and 1.3 lbs, with fish measured up to 19.5 inches. Good numbers of largemouth bass over 15.0 inches were sampled when compared to other area lakes. Good water quality, aquatic vegetation cover, and spawning substrate provide excellent habitat for largemouth bass and panfish in Spirit Lake. Spirit Lake has an abundant panfish population and can provide good fishing for bluegill, pumpkinseed, and black crappie. Anglers will find good numbers of bluegill and pumpkinseed in the 6-8 inch size range and black crappie in the 9-11 inch size range. Black crappie abundance was up from past surveys. Northern pike abundance was up, with the gillnet catch rate of 18.3 pike/gillnet the highest recorded for all surveys on Spirit Lake and above the range "typical" for this lake class. Northern pike numbers in past surveys have fluctuated, but have generally been within this "typical" range. Anglers can expect to find lots of small, "hammer handle" northern pike in Spirit Lake. Sampled northern pike had an average length and weight of 19.3 inches and 1.7 pounds, with pike measured up to 31.9 inches. High numbers of small fish and slow growth rates are limiting the northern pike population in Spirit Lake. Preferred northern pike spawning habitat is found in the shallow, marshy west bay. Other species sampled included moderate numbers of yellow perch, yellow bullhead, and brown bullhead. White sucker were sampled in low numbers.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Yellow Perch, Bluegill, and Walleye in Spirit. See the full species list above for catch rates, size structure, and quality scores.

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

Spirit has a maximum depth of 45 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

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

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