Ember

Ember Lake is a small (55 acre) lake located two miles north of the City of Silver Creek in northern Wright County. There is no public access on this natural environment lake. There are 1.3 miles of shoreline. Most development has occurred along the south end of the lake. Because of good water clarity native aquatic plants were common. No stocking has been done and management has been limited to periodic netting. The last survey was in 1984. Curled pondweed was surveyed at peak abundance and found to be growing at or near the surface on 2.5 acres (4.5% of the total surface acres). Fourteen species of aquatic plants were noted. Illinois pondweed and northern milfoil were the most abundant species. Because of good water clarity, plants were found growing to a depth of 12 feet. At the time of the survey (July 2  3, 2007), oxygen levels were adequate for fish to 17 feet. One notable change that has occurred in the fishery between the 1984 and 2007 surveys is the significant decline of northern pike. Net catches of northern pike were below the normal range. If this is correct, it is somewhat unusual, as northern pike would be expected to thrive in this type of lake with clear water and abundant aquatic plants. Also, northern pike populations have been increasing over the past few decades and have become abundant in a majority of lakes in the area. Of the forage species only a few yellow perch were captured. A primary management species for Ember Lake is largemouth bass. Ember Lake has an excellent bass population with a wide range of sizes available. Anglers have reported fish up to 20 inches. Little is known about the former condition of the largemouth bass population, as 2007 was the first opportunity to sample with night electrofishing. The catch was just under 300 per hour, four times higher than the average catch for Wright County lakes. Ember Lake has a moderate population of bluegills but not black crappies. About a third of the bluegills taken with trap nets were larger than seven inches. The average size of the bluegills was 6.5 inches. The bluegills in Ember Lake grow slowly and take seven years to reach seven inches. Other species in the fish community include: brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, Johnny darter, pumpkinseed sunfish, and yellow bullhead. Maintaining the water quality in Ember Lake should be a high priority of the county and landowners around the lake. Some effort may be needed to identify any sources of phosphorus and plans developed to reduce these sources. Buffer strips along inlets and lakeshore property are encouraged to reduce nutrients entering the lake. Maintaining adequate septic systems and keeping grass clippings and raked leaves out the lake will also help reduce the amount of nutrients entering the lake, thus slowing excess algal and vegetation growth.

Ember Lake is a small (55 acre) lake located two miles north of the City of Silver Creek in northern Wright County. There is no public access on this natural environment lake. There are 1.3 miles of shoreline. Most development has occurred along the south end of the lake. Because of good water clarity native aquatic plants were common. No stocking has been done and management has been limited to periodic netting. The last survey was in 1984. Curled pondweed was surveyed at peak abundance and found to be growing at or near the surface on 2.5 acres (4.5% of the total surface acres). Fourteen species of aquatic plants were noted. Illinois pondweed and northern milfoil were the most abundant species. Because of good water clarity, plants were found growing to a depth of 12 feet. At the time of the survey (July 2  3, 2007), oxygen levels were adequate for fish to 17 feet. One notable change that has occurred in the fishery between the 1984 and 2007 surveys is the significant decline of northern pike. Net catches of northern pike were below the normal range. If this is correct, it is somewhat unusual, as northern pike would be expected to thrive in this type of lake with clear water and abundant aquatic plants. Also, northern pike populations have been increasing over the past few decades and have become abundant in a majority of lakes in the area. Of the forage species only a few yellow perch were captured. A primary management species for Ember Lake is largemouth bass. Ember Lake has an excellent bass population with a wide range of sizes available. Anglers have reported fish up to 20 inches. Little is known about the former condition of the largemouth bass population, as 2007 was the first opportunity to sample with night electrofishing. The catch was just under 300 per hour, four times higher than the average catch for Wright County lakes. Ember Lake has a moderate population of bluegills but not black crappies. About a third of the bluegills taken with trap nets were larger than seven inches. The average size of the bluegills was 6.5 inches. The bluegills in Ember Lake grow slowly and take seven years to reach seven inches. Other species in the fish community include: brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish, Johnny darter, pumpkinseed sunfish, and yellow bullhead. Maintaining the water quality in Ember Lake should be a high priority of the county and landowners around the lake. Some effort may be needed to identify any sources of phosphorus and plans developed to reduce these sources. Buffer strips along inlets and lakeshore property are encouraged to reduce nutrients entering the lake. Maintaining adequate septic systems and keeping grass clippings and raked leaves out the lake will also help reduce the amount of nutrients entering the lake, thus slowing excess algal and vegetation growth.

Northern Pike are present at 12/gill net, similar to 1973 and twice the local average. Most were 19-21 inches and show average growth. Since 1973, bluegill abundance has skyrocketed from 1.7 to 215 per trap net. Growth is slow, reproduction high; ages 1-3 were too small to be caught well in trap nets. Largemouth Bass (1.0/gill net, not taken in trapnets) also show slow growth (well below state average). Black Crappie numbers (0.5/trap net) have fallen well below the local average from average levels in 1973. Their growth rate is average, but fish younger than age 6 were not caught. The Yellow Perch catch dropped from 16/gill net in 1973 to 0.5/gill net in 1984. The Yellow Bullhead abundance increased from 0.3/trap net in 1973 to 12/trap net and most are 3-9 inches long.

Based on Minnesota DNR survey data, anglers target Largemouth Bass, Yellow Perch, Northern Pike, Black Crappie, and Bluegill in Ember. 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 Ember. Check the DNR LakeFinder page for current access details before you go.

Ember has a maximum depth of 45 feet and a mean depth of 11.3 feet, per Minnesota DNR data.

The most recent Minnesota DNR survey data for the main sport fish in Ember is from 2007. Surveys this old should be treated with some caution — fish populations change over time.

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