Minnesota DNR fisheries surveys · latest August 22, 2011
Species recorded at Helen Lake
10 species on the Minnesota DNR list for this lake. A species on the list has been recorded here; it does not mean it is catchable today or in every part of the lake.
Stocking at Helen Lake
No stocking record for Helen Lake appears in the Minnesota DNR material on file. That is an absence in the published record, not a confirmation that the lake is unstocked — some waters are managed as naturally reproducing and never appear in a stocking list at all.
Getting on the water
Minnesota DNR lists the public access sites, including ramp type and parking, in the documents below.
Survey results in full
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on August 22, 2011 caught 4.00 northern pike per gill net at Helen Lake.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Helen Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 3 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
4 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2011-08-22 (Standard Survey).
4 surveys on file · most recent 2011-08-22 (Standard Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 9.67 | 3–9 in 2011-08-22 | 0.11 lb |
| Largemouth Bass | 6.94 | 6–18 in 2011-08-22 | 1.83 lb |
| Bluntnose Minnow | 6.15 | ||
| Yellow Perch | 5.06 | 5 in 2011-08-22 | 0.06 lb |
| Black Crappie | 4.49 | 3–10 in 2011-08-22 | 0.23 lb |
CPUE = catch per unit effort, fish caught per net per set in a standardised survey. It measures abundance, not size, and is not a weekly bite report.
Length Distributions
Number of fish caught at each inch class in the most recent survey that recorded lengths. Red dashed line marks an approximate trophy threshold for that species.
Bluegill
Largemouth Bass
Yellow Perch
Black Crappie
From the 2011-08-22 survey
Helen (Tank) Lake is located in eastern Itasca County near Goodland, MN in the St. Louis River watershed. The lake is representative of ecological lake class 32. Helen Lake has a surface area of 158 acres and a littoral area of 86 acres. The maximum depth is 32 feet and the lake has 3.8 miles of shoreline. The Sechhi…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Helen Lake. 3 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — HelenFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Aquatic Plant Report — Helen (0576)Aquatic Plant Report · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Public Water Access Sites — HelenPublic Water Access Sites · MN DNR LakeFinder
Common questions
What fish are in Helen Lake?
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on August 22, 2011 caught 4.00 northern pike per gill net at Helen Lake. Minnesota DNR lists 10 species for the lake in total. Those are survey results, not a catch report: a net set on one date measures what was in that net.
When was Helen Lake last surveyed?
The most recent fisheries survey on file for Helen Lake is dated August 22, 2011. Survey intervals vary by lake and by species; a gap of several years between surveys is normal and does not mean the record is missing.
Is Helen Lake stocked?
No stocking record for Helen Lake appears in the Minnesota DNR material on file. That is not the same as a confirmed unstocked lake: it means no stocking document was published for it in the records this page draws on.
Do the water-quality readings tell me how Helen Lake fishes?
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Helen Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 3 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
Before you eat what you catch
Water-quality readings are not a consumption advisory. Mercury and PCB advice for Minnesota waters comes from MDH, and it is issued per species and per size class: a lake with clear, low-nutrient water can still carry a meal limit on larger predator fish.
Where to stay near Helen Lake
Top-rated places to stay near Helen Lake
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