Black Crappie Lakes in North Dakota

Found in 41 North Dakota lakes

Panfish like Black Crappie are the workhorses of North Dakota recreational fishing — abundant, accessible, present in 41 surveyed lakes. Black Crappie is narrowly distributed — only 41 lakes in North Dakota have a documented record. The constraint is usually habitat: cold water, specific depth profile, or river connection.

Panfish species like Black Crappie tolerate a wide range of water quality, so their presence in a lake says less about the lake than the absence of a game-fish would. Cross-reference the Black Crappie lake list below against the LakeGrade rubric: lakes with both an A or B grade and Black Crappie documented are the best places to start for recreational targeting.

North Dakota Lakes

Avg. Grade

Grade A Lakes

Counties

Best Black Crappie Lakes in North Dakota

Rank	Lake	County	Grade	Clarity	Depth
1	Lake Upsilon	Rolette	A	11.2 ft	25 ft
2	Arroda Lake	Oliver	B	6.7 ft	36.7 ft
3	Whitman Dam Lake	Nelson	B	12 ft	20.8 ft
4	Patterson Lake	Stark	B	-	24.8 ft
5	Lake Ashtabula	Barnes	B	3.4 ft	42.8 ft
6	Lake Ashtabula	Barnes	B	6.6 ft	42.8 ft
7	Mt Carmel Dam Lake	Cavalier	B	7.9 ft	31.2 ft
8	Northgate Dam Lake	Burke	B	9.4 ft	23.6 ft
9	Jamestown Reservoir	Stutsman	B	7.2 ft	36.2 ft
10	Pheasant Lake	Dickey	B	3.6 ft	19.1 ft
11	Lutz Dam Lake	Bowman	B	14.4 ft	12.6 ft
12	Homme Dam Lake	Walsh	B	5.7 ft	29.3 ft
13	Fordville Dam Lake	Grand Forks	C	4.4 ft	29.9 ft
14	Lake Metigoshe	Bottineau	C	5.4 ft	23.3 ft
15	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	5.1 ft	57 ft
16	Lake Lamoure	LaMoure	C	8 ft	31.4 ft
17	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	5.2 ft	57 ft
18	East Arroda Lake	Oliver	C	5.6 ft	33.6 ft
19	White Earth Dam Lake	Mountrail	C	3 ft	19.5 ft
20	Trenton Lake	Williams	C	1.5 ft	8.1 ft
21	Renwick Dam Lake	Pembina	C	3 ft	16.3 ft
22	Bisbee-Big Coulee Dam Lake	Towner	C	8 ft	26.9 ft
23	Devils Lake	Ramsey	C	5.2 ft	58.1 ft
24	Devils Lake	Benson	C	3.7 ft	58.1 ft
25	Alkali Lake	Sargent	C	4.6 ft	21.9 ft
26	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	2.4 ft	57 ft
27	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	3.6 ft	57 ft
28	Harmony Lake	Mercer	C	2.3 ft	21.2 ft
29	Bowman-Haley Dam Lake	Bowman	C	3.9 ft	27.8 ft
30	Jamestown Reservoir	Stutsman	D	6 ft	36.2 ft
31	Larimore Dam Lake	Grand Forks	D	3 ft	28.2 ft
32	Sheep Creek Dam Lake	Grant	D	2.7 ft	33 ft
33	Sweetwater Lake	Ramsey	D	2.9 ft	-
34	Brewer Lake	Cass	D	4.3 ft	30.9 ft
35	Nelson Lake	Oliver	D	1.3 ft	33.4 ft
36	Froelich Dam Lake	Sioux	D	3.9 ft	34.2 ft
37	Buffalo Lake	Pierce	F	0.3 ft	15.9 ft
38	Dead Colt Creek Dam Lake	Ransom	F	3.3 ft	39.4 ft
39	Sweetbriar Dam Lake	Morton	F	3 ft	29.9 ft
40	Sweet Briar Dam-Mid Reservoir	Morton	F	3 ft	29.9 ft
41	Harmon Lake	Morton	F	-	46.8 ft

Frequently Asked Questions

How many North Dakota lakes have black crappie?

Black Crappie are found in 41 lakes in North Dakota. The average water quality grade of these lakes is C (Fair).

What are the best black crappie lakes in North Dakota?

The best black crappie lakes in North Dakota by water quality are Lake Upsilon, Arroda Lake, Whitman Dam Lake, Patterson Lake, Lake Ashtabula.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.