Bluegill Lakes in North Dakota

Found in 62 North Dakota lakes · 178 in Michigan

Bluegill is panfish — the family of smaller, abundant species that anchor kid-friendly fishing and ice-fishing in North Dakota. Documented in 240 lakes across our dataset. Bluegill is moderately distributed — 178 lakes in Michigan and 62 in North Dakota. Some counties have it, others do not, so checking the per-lake pages matters.

Panfish species like Bluegill 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 Bluegill lake list below against the LakeGrade rubric: lakes with both an A or B grade and Bluegill documented are the best places to start for recreational targeting.

North Dakota Lakes

Avg. Grade

Grade A Lakes

Counties

Best Bluegill Lakes in North Dakota

Rank	Lake	County	Grade	Clarity	Depth
1	Wood Lake	Benson	A	-	26.2 ft
2	Arnegard Dam Lake	McKenzie	A	-	12.2 ft
3	Spiritwood Lake	Stutsman	A	31 ft	54.7 ft
4	Lake Upsilon	Rolette	A	11.2 ft	25 ft
5	Kota Ray Dam Lake	Williams	B	7.7 ft	26.2 ft
6	Patterson Lake	Stark	B	-	24.8 ft
7	Lake Ashtabula	Barnes	B	3.4 ft	42.8 ft
8	Lake Ashtabula	Barnes	B	6.6 ft	42.8 ft
9	Northgate Dam Lake	Burke	B	9.4 ft	23.6 ft
10	Jamestown Reservoir	Stutsman	B	7.2 ft	36.2 ft
11	Pheasant Lake	Dickey	B	3.6 ft	19.1 ft
12	Baukol-Noonan Dam Lake	Divide	B	9.7 ft	28 ft
13	North Lemmon Lake	Adams	B	5.7 ft	31.4 ft
14	Blacktail Dam Lake	Williams	B	7.2 ft	36.3 ft
15	Lutz Dam Lake	Bowman	B	14.4 ft	12.6 ft
16	Kettle Lake	Williams	B	5.3 ft	35.8 ft
17	Carlson-Tande Dam Lake	Griggs	C	5.6 ft	23 ft
18	Fordville Dam Lake	Grand Forks	C	4.4 ft	29.9 ft
19	Mooreton Pond	Richland	C	3 ft	19.5 ft
20	Red Willow Lake	Griggs	C	6.4 ft	23.5 ft
21	Kulm-Edgeley Dam Lake	LaMoure	C	9 ft	27.4 ft
22	Lake Metigoshe	Bottineau	C	5.4 ft	23.3 ft
23	Short Creek Dam Lake	Burke	C	3.8 ft	27.6 ft
24	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	5.1 ft	57 ft
25	Lake Lamoure	LaMoure	C	8 ft	31.4 ft
26	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	5.2 ft	57 ft
27	Belfield Dam Lake	Stark	C	3.8 ft	16.3 ft
28	Kalina Dam Lake	Bowman	C	3.1 ft	22 ft
29	White Earth Dam Lake	Mountrail	C	3 ft	19.5 ft
30	Clearwater Lake	Mountrail	C	2.1 ft	16.5 ft
31	Hiddenwood Lake	Ward	C	3.1 ft	17.9 ft
32	Frettum Dam Lake	Kidder	C	2.6 ft	29.9 ft
33	Dion Lake	Rolette	C	8.5 ft	20.1 ft
34	Mcville Dam Lake	Nelson	C	6.9 ft	24.7 ft
35	Clausen Springs Lake	Barnes	C	-	29.1 ft
36	South Golden Lake	Steele	C	6.2 ft	17 ft
37	North Golden Lake	Steele	C	3.8 ft	12.6 ft
38	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	2.4 ft	57 ft
39	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	3.6 ft	57 ft
40	Harmony Lake	Mercer	C	2.3 ft	21.2 ft
41	Larson Lake	Hettinger	C	4.8 ft	10.7 ft
42	Indian Creek Dam Lake	Hettinger	C	3.1 ft	30 ft
43	Bowman-Haley Dam Lake	Bowman	C	3.9 ft	27.8 ft
44	Mcleod Reservoir	Williams	C	5.4 ft	34.6 ft
45	E. A. Patterson Lake	Stark	D	5.3 ft	18.4 ft
46	Jamestown Reservoir	Stutsman	D	6 ft	36.2 ft
47	Larimore Dam Lake	Grand Forks	D	3 ft	28.2 ft
48	Mcdowell Dam Lake	Burleigh	D	1.6 ft	39.6 ft
49	Sheep Creek Dam Lake	Grant	D	2.7 ft	33 ft
50	Gravel Lake	Rolette	D	6.1 ft	21.6 ft

Showing top 50 of 62 lakes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many North Dakota lakes have bluegill?

Bluegill are found in 62 lakes in North Dakota. The average water quality grade of these lakes is C (Fair).

What are the best bluegill lakes in North Dakota?

The best bluegill lakes in North Dakota by water quality are Wood Lake, Arnegard Dam Lake, Spiritwood Lake, Lake Upsilon, Kota Ray Dam Lake.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.