Northern pike Lakes in North Dakota

Found in 110 North Dakota lakes · 99 in Michigan

Rough fish like Northern pike are often associated with eutrophic, nutrient-loaded waters. Their presence — documented in 99 North Dakota lakes — is often a signal of how the rest of the fishery is functioning. Northern pike is narrowly distributed — only 99 lakes in Michigan have a documented record. The constraint is usually habitat: cold water, specific depth profile, or river connection.

Rough-fish-dominant lakes are worth checking the grade on: a rough-fish-heavy fishery often reflects an underlying nutrient-loading problem in the watershed. Cross-reference the Northern pike lake list below against the LakeGrade rubric: lakes with both an A or B grade and Northern pike documented are the best places to start for recreational targeting.

110

North Dakota Lakes

Avg. Grade

Grade A Lakes

Counties

Northern pike Lakes Map

Every North Dakota lake with documented northern pike, colored by water-quality grade.

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Best Northern pike 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	Epping-Springbrook Dam-Littoral Lake	Williams	A	-	25.4 ft
4	Jarvis Beach Lake	Rolette	A	-	26.3 ft
5	Spiritwood Lake	Stutsman	A	31 ft	54.7 ft
6	Lake Upsilon	Rolette	A	11.2 ft	25 ft
7	Twin Lakes	LaMoure	A	14.1 ft	40.3 ft
8	Round Lake	McHenry	A	12.1 ft	16.7 ft
9	Davis Dam Lake	Slope	B	7.5 ft	5.8 ft
10	Arroda Lake	Oliver	B	6.7 ft	36.7 ft
11	Skjermo Lake	Divide	B	7.7 ft	19 ft
12	Whitman Dam Lake	Nelson	B	12 ft	20.8 ft
13	Patterson Lake	Stark	B	-	24.8 ft
14	Lake Ashtabula	Barnes	B	3.4 ft	42.8 ft
15	Lake Ashtabula	Barnes	B	6.6 ft	42.8 ft
16	Mt Carmel Dam Lake	Cavalier	B	7.9 ft	31.2 ft
17	Gordon Center Lake	Rolette	B	8.2 ft	28.3 ft
18	Lake Darling	Renville	B	4.9 ft	28.7 ft
19	Lake Darling	Renville	B	9.8 ft	28.7 ft
20	Clark Lake	Stutsman	B	10 ft	21.9 ft
21	Jarvis Lake Center	Rolette	B	7.7 ft	26.3 ft
22	Moores Lake	Dickey	B	6.2 ft	12.9 ft
23	Jamestown Reservoir	Stutsman	B	7.2 ft	36.2 ft
24	Pheasant Lake	Dickey	B	3.6 ft	19.1 ft
25	Baukol-Noonan Dam Lake	Divide	B	9.7 ft	28 ft
26	Blacktail Dam Lake	Williams	B	7.2 ft	36.3 ft
27	Lake Williams	Kidder	B	4.7 ft	30.5 ft
28	Homme Dam Lake	Walsh	B	5.7 ft	29.3 ft
29	Lake Audubon	McLean	B	4.7 ft	59.4 ft
30	North Carlson Lake	Ward	B	3.7 ft	24.7 ft
31	Carlson-Tande Dam Lake	Griggs	C	5.6 ft	23 ft
32	Fordville Dam Lake	Grand Forks	C	4.4 ft	29.9 ft
33	Red Willow Lake	Griggs	C	6.4 ft	23.5 ft
34	Powers Lake	Mountrail	C	5.6 ft	9.7 ft
35	Kulm-Edgeley Dam Lake	LaMoure	C	9 ft	27.4 ft
36	Lake Metigoshe	Bottineau	C	5.4 ft	23.3 ft
37	Short Creek Dam Lake	Burke	C	3.8 ft	27.6 ft
38	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	5.1 ft	57 ft
39	Lake Lamoure	LaMoure	C	8 ft	31.4 ft
40	Lake Tschida	Grant	C	5.2 ft	57 ft
41	Buffalo Lodge Lake	McHenry	C	3 ft	12.2 ft
42	East Arroda Lake	Oliver	C	5.6 ft	33.6 ft
43	Kalina Dam Lake	Bowman	C	3.1 ft	22 ft
44	Beaver Lake	Logan	C	1.4 ft	7.9 ft
45	Harvey Dam Lake	Wells	C	5.4 ft	20.2 ft
46	Custer Mine Pond	McLean	C	2.2 ft	23.7 ft
47	Bader Lake	Stutsman	C	1.3 ft	20.1 ft
48	White Earth Dam Lake	Mountrail	C	3 ft	19.5 ft
49	Trenton Lake	Williams	C	1.5 ft	8.1 ft
50	Clearwater Lake	Mountrail	C	2.1 ft	16.5 ft

Showing top 50 of 110 lakes.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many North Dakota lakes have northern pike?

Northern pike are found in 110 lakes in North Dakota. The average water quality grade of these lakes is C (Fair).

What are the best northern pike lakes in North Dakota?

The best northern pike lakes in North Dakota by water quality are Wood Lake, Arnegard Dam Lake, Epping-Springbrook Dam-Littoral Lake, Jarvis Beach Lake, Spiritwood Lake.

Fish species from state agency survey, stocking, and public fishing-access records; water-quality grades from the EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys.