Minnesota Lake Depths
NESW

Pickerel Lake

Dakota County, Minnesota · MN DNR bathymetric survey
10ft Max
depth
104 acres 2 contours
Paddling Index52ModestMedium confidencesheltered geometry
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Depth scale

The lake

Survey readout

Pickerel Lake is mapped to a depth of 10 ft on the Minnesota DNR survey and covers about 104 acres in Dakota County, Minnesota. Depths come from the Minnesota DNR survey of 1980.

Measured from the Minnesota DNR lake bathymetric contour survey.

Deepest mapped contour
10 ft
Survey year
1980
Surface area
104 acres
Shoreline
2.64 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation
1% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access
No public DNR launch identified
Additional depth details2 contours
Contour depths
0–10 ft
Recorded point soundings
10 ft
Compare with another lake
Chart data

Provenance

Sources: MN DNR Lake Bathymetric Contours, USGS 3DEP, USDA NAIP (public domain), OpenStreetMap (ODbL).

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Map details & sources4 sources

All layers registered to one bounding box; positions in WGS 84.

Survey-derived depth contours drape over USGS 3DEP elevation, with a USDA NAIP aerial basemap and OpenStreetMap shoreline. Color shows surveyed depth; dark lines are the survey's own isobaths.

Coordinates
44.91705, -93.12014
MN DNR lake ID
19007900
Vertical exaggeration
3.0×
Basemap
USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size
2.3 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-09-25
52 / 100ModestData confidence: Medium

Pickerel Lake has a partly natural setting, generally sheltered geometry, substantial nearby higher-volume roads.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

ComponentRatingPoints of weightMeasurement
Natural settingGood26.0 of 4366% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (30% forest, 31% wetland; 18% developed)
Geometric wind exposureVery Good24.7 of 36mean fetch 846 m · 0% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · generally short fetch
Motor & speed rulesNot modeled—Minnesota’s lake-by-lake motor, speed and no-wake rules are mostly county and city ordinances, not map data, so they are not part of the Minnesota index. Check local signage and ordinances before going out.
Public accessNot listed—No public access site of this lake’s own in the MN DNR water access and fishing site records. Private, commercial and informal launches are not all in these records, so this is not evidence that access is poor — the component is excluded and the remaining weights are renormalized.
Road isolationModest1.6 of 21substantial nearby higher-volume roads · 44 MnDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 80,449 vehicles/day

Additional paddling considerations

These describe the lake but are not part of the v1 Paddling Index and do not change the number above.

Wake sensitivity
Low — wide enough that wakes disperse over most of the lake
Aquatic vegetation
Low — approximately 1% mapped coverage · NAIP aerial imagery (NDVI)
Observed motorized activity
Unknown — No lake-level measurement of boat traffic is available. Legal permission to operate motors is not evidence of use.
Wildlife habitat potential
Moderate — 30% forest and 31% wetland cover within 150 m of shore
How this index is calculated. The Paddling Index is a relative composite derived from lake geometry and public land-cover, access and traffic-count data. It is not a user review, a safety rating, or a prediction of an individual outing. Differences of a few points should not be treated as meaningful — an 84 and an 82 are broadly comparable. Components and weights for Minnesota lakes: natural setting 35%, geometric wind exposure 29%, public access 18%, road isolation 18%. Motor, speed and no-wake rules are not modeled for Minnesota, and traffic counts cover state, county and some city roads but not township roads. Where a component has no data the remaining weights are renormalized and the confidence rating is lowered; below Medium confidence no number is shown. Minnesota scores are relative to other Minnesota lakes and are not directly comparable with Paddling Index scores on our sister sites, which use different data sources, some with a watercraft-rules component. Sources: MN DNR lake bathymetry outline, USGS/MRLC NLCD Land Cover (2021) and MnDOT Annual Average Daily Traffic (counts 2021–2025). Conditions change quickly — check current weather and local conditions before going out.

Fish you might catch

from DNR surveys

16 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colors, not photographs (provenance).

Common Carp
Silver Redhorse
Freshwater Drum
Gizzard Shad
Hybrid Sunfish
Golden Shiner
Compiled from Minnesota DNR fishery surveys. Silhouettes are stylized and scaled to typical adult sizes relative to one another. Presence is not a promise — fishing isn’t a sure thing.

Fishery

surveyed 2015
114Fish sampled
16Species

Gamefish Northern Pike 6 · Bowfin 3 · Channel Catfish 1 · Largemouth Bass 1

Panfish Bluegill 31 · Yellow Perch 16 · Black Crappie 7

All survey species16 species

Gamefish

Northern Pike6 caught · to 31″
Bowfin3 caught · to 27″
Channel Catfish1 caught · to 19″
Largemouth Bass1 caught · to 5″

Panfish

Bluegill31 caught · to 6″
Yellow Perch16 caught · to 6″
Black Crappie7 caught · to 7″
Green Sunfish3 caught · to 7″
Hybrid Sunfish2 caught · to 6″
Pumpkinseed2 caught · to 5″
White Crappie1 caught · to 12″

Forage & nongame

Gizzard Shad32 caught · to 9″
Golden Shiner6 caught · to 7″
Common Carp1 caught · to 25″
Freshwater Drum1 caught · to 18″
Silver Redhorse1 caught · to 9″
Length is the largest fish netted in the survey, not an angler record. Source: Minnesota DNR lake survey (LakeFinder).

Infested waters listing

Not on the Minnesota DNR’s infested waters list as of September 9, 2026. This does not mean the lake is free of invasive species: the list covers certain species only, and a species can be present before anyone finds it.

What does the infested waters list mean?

The Minnesota DNR lists a lake, river, pond or wetland as infested when it contains an aquatic invasive species that could spread to other waters, or when it is connected to a water where one is present. Activities such as bait harvest and water use are managed differently on infested waters. Check the current list before moving water, bait or equipment.

Source: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. List of Infested Waters, September 9, 2026. https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/invasives/ais/infested.html

Quick answers

Pickerel Lake — common questions

How deep is Pickerel Lake?

The deepest contour on the Minnesota DNR bathymetric survey of Pickerel Lake is 10 ft. That is the deepest depth the historical survey map records, which may differ from the deepest point of the lake itself.

How big is Pickerel Lake?

Pickerel Lake covers about 104 acres in Dakota County, Minnesota.

What fish are in Pickerel Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include channel catfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin. The page lists all 16 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Pickerel Lake?

No public launch for Pickerel Lake appears in the Minnesota DNR access data. That is not the same as the lake being private -- private and commercial launches are not in that source.