Lower Bottle Lake

How big is Lower Bottle Lake?

How deep is Lower Bottle Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Lower Bottle Lake?

What are the closest cities to Lower Bottle Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Lower Bottle Lake?

Lower Bottle Lake is located four miles north of Dorset in southern Hubbard County. Lower Bottle is separated by a narrows from Upper Bottle, both lakes having similar fish communities and are generally managed together. Lower Bottle has a surface area of 641 acres and a maximum depth of 110 feet. A state-owned public access is located on the north shore of Upper Bottle Lake, and navigation is through the channel between the lakes. Boating access is also available by small boats through the shallow river connecting to Emma Lake to the south. Lower Bottle provides multi species opportunities to the angler, with good populations of Walleye, Yellow Perch, Northern Pike, and panfish.

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has classified Minnesota's lakes into 43 different types based on physical, chemical, and other characteristics. Lower Bottle is in lake class 22. Class 22 lakes are generally very large, very deep, hard water lakes, with very irregularly shaped shorelines, and a low littoral zone (lake area less than 15 feet deep). Other class 22 lakes in the Park Rapids management area include Big Sand, Kabekona, Long, and Potato.

Walleye abundance remained strong in Lower Bottle with gill net catch rates similar to past surveys. Sampled Walleye ranged in length from 8.2 to 22.8 inches with an average length of 14.1 inches. Good numbers of smaller Walleye (8-12 inches) were sampled.

Yellow Perch, an important forage species for Walleye, were sampled in low numbers. Yellow Perch were small in size with fish measured up to 7.1 inches.
Anglers can expect to find an abundant Northern Pike population in Lower Bottle. Northern Pike had an average length and weight of 22.2 inches and 2.6 pounds with fish measured up to 34.2 inches.

While not know as a bass - panfish lake, Lower Bottle does provide angling opportunities for Black Crappie, Bluegill, Pumpkinseed, Largemouth Bass and Smallmouth Bass. Present and past surveys have shown the population of these species to fluctuate from low to moderate numbers.

Other species sampled included high numbers of Rock Bass and White Sucker and low numbers of Brown Bullhead and Yellow Bullhead.

Faucet snails, an aquatic invasive species (AIS) have been identified in Lower Bottle. To avoid spreading AIS, lake users are required to remove all aquatic plants or animals from their watercraft and drain all water from their boat before leaving the access.

What is the average air temp for Lower Bottle Lake?

Are there any state parks near Lower Bottle Lake?