Minnesota DNR fisheries surveys · latest September 19, 2016
Species recorded at Isabella Lake
11 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 Isabella Lake
No stocking record for Isabella 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 September 19, 2016 caught 7.25 walleye per gill net at Isabella Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–21 inches.
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Isabella Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 2 years of monitoring is declining. Catch rate is not a swim clearance and is not a weekly bite report.
DNR Fisheries Survey Summary
9 surveys on file from MN DNR Fisheries. Most recent: 2016-09-19 (Standard Survey).
9 surveys on file · most recent 2016-09-19 (Standard Survey)
| Species | Catch rate (CPUE) | Size | Avg weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bluegill | 8.00 | 1–4 in 2016-09-19 | |
| Walleye | 7.86 | 7–21 in 2016-09-19 | 0.63 lb |
| White Sucker | 4.29 | 6–21 in 2016-09-19 | 1.52 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
Walleye
White Sucker
From the 2016-09-19 survey
Isabella Lake has an area of 1,257 acres and has a maximum depth of 19 feet. It is located entirely with the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) approximately 13 miles north of Isabella, MN off of USFS Road 377 (Tomahawk Road). The lake has three different access points. The main access to Isabella Lake is a…
DNR Reports & Resources
Minnesota DNR LakeFinder publishes lake survey, fish stocking, water access, and aquatic plant data for Isabella Lake. 2 reports on file.
These links open on the official state DNR websites (Wisconsin DNR survey PDFs · Minnesota DNR LakeFinder).
- —Fisheries Lake Survey — IsabellaFisheries Lake Survey · MN DNR LakeFinder
- —Public Water Access Sites — IsabellaPublic Water Access Sites · MN DNR LakeFinder
Common questions
What fish are in Isabella Lake?
Minnesota DNR's Standard Survey on September 19, 2016 caught 7.25 walleye per gill net at Isabella Lake. Length samples in the latest survey that recorded them ran 7–21 inches. Minnesota DNR lists 11 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 Isabella Lake last surveyed?
The most recent fisheries survey on file for Isabella Lake is dated September 19, 2016. 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 Isabella Lake stocked?
No stocking record for Isabella 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 Isabella Lake fishes?
A DNR fisheries survey reports fish abundance and catch rates, not water quality. LakeQuality shows Isabella Lake’s water-quality measurements separately, and the water-quality trend over 2 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 Isabella Lake
Top-rated places to stay near Isabella Lake
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