Bagley Lake

How big is Bagley Lake?

How deep is Bagley Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Bagley Lake?

What are the closest cities to Bagley Lake?

Are there boat launches on Bagley Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Bagley Lake?

Bagley Lake is seven miles north of Leonard in northeastern Clearwater County, and one mile east of County Road 14 in Clover Township. It is a 94-acre lake with a maximum depth of 39 feet. There is a county-owned public access site with an earthen boat ramp at the northwest corner of the lake. The lakeshore has very little residential development, and the surrounding area is a mixture of forest and agricultural lands.

Bagley Lake is primarily managed for black crappie and northern pike and secondarily for sunfish and largemouth bass. No stocking of any species has occurred since 1993. Partial winterkill events have occurred over the years with kills reported in the 1950s, 1962, and 1991. These kills influenced fish community composition by favoring tolerant species such as northern pike and yellow perch over less tolerant species such as largemouth bass and black crappie. In 2009, The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency reported a harmful summer algae bloom on Bagley Lake.

The primary predator species in this lake is northern pike. In the 2009 population assessment, northern pike abundance was very high, and had increased substantially over the previous five years. In spite of this change, northern pike "quality" indicators such as average length also improved slightly, and growth rates remained good (typically, as northern pike densities increase, the rate of growth and, as a result, average fish size, decrease). The average Bagley Lake northern pike is about 20 inches long, and it reaches that size sometime during its fourth growing season.

It appears that the black crappie population of Bagley Lake has responded well to an extended period without a winterkill event. In 2009, crappie were abundant; they ranged in length from 5 to 11 inches and were represented by four different year classes. The 2005 year class comprised 89% of the aged sample.

Pumpkinseed sunfish were also fairly abundant. Pumpkinseed up to 9 inches in length were captured, although the typical fish was closer to 7 inches long. Bluegill are not known to inhabit Bagley Lake.

There has been a downward trend in yellow perch abundance in Bagley Lake from 1978 to the present. In 2004, 83% of yellow perch in the sample were greater than nine inches total length, while in 2009, no perch were captured that were greater than nine inches long.

In 2009, only two largemouth bass were captured. Specialized sampling such as night electrofishing would need to be employed to obtain a more representative sample of this species.

Are there any state parks near Bagley Lake?