Sucker Lake

How big is Sucker Lake?

How deep is Sucker Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Sucker Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Sucker Lake?

Sucker Lake is a 393 acre lake located 21 miles northeast of Ely. There are five accesses, two of which are water routes, and three portages. The two water routes consist of a connection to Newfound Lake on the south end and a connection to Birch Lake on the north end. The three portages consist of Prairie Portage (a motor portage on the U.S. side of the lake, where a truck concessionaire will bring motor boats back and forth to Basswood Lake), a 20 rod portage on the Canadian side also connecting to Basswood Lake, and a 6 rod portage on the northeast side connecting to the aforementioned Birch Lake. Although Sucker Lake is located in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness (BWCAW) within the Superior National Forest, outboard motors up to 25 hp are allowed. There are eight U.S. Forest Service maintained campsites and visitors need to have appropriate permits, issued by the U.S. Forest Service, to visit the lake. The lake has a maximum depth of 31 feet and at the time of the survey, light green colored water.

Sucker was thermally stratified on August 13, 2018 with a surface temperature of 77 F and a bottom temperature of 48 F. Oxygen levels were adequate for gamefish to a depth of 24 feet. Sucker Lake receives water from Newfound Lake to the south and Birch Lake to the northeast. The outlet flows over a fixed sill dam on the lake's northwest side on its way to Basswood Lake. Lake bottom substrates along the shoreline are mostly ledge rock, rubble, and gravel. Aquatic vegetation is very sparse.

There is no stocking currently being done on Sucker Lake.

The overall gillnet catch rate for all fish combined was 51.9 fish/net which was higher than average for the lake. Fish species sampled were cisco, walleye, white sucker, northern pike, yellow perch, rock bass, and smallmouth bass.

The 2018 gill nets sampled 84 walleye for a catch rate of 9.3 fish/net. This catch rate was the second highest on record for Sucker and higher than average compared to other similar lakes. The catch rate was also quite good for Tower area lakes overall. Lengths ranged from 9 to 28 inches with an average of 14 inches. The average walleye weighed nearly a pound and a half, which was good compared to other similar lakes. Growth was extremely fast with a 4 year old walleye averaging nearly 18 inches. Fish were aged up to 17 years old with strong year classes in 2009 and 2016.

The northern pike gill net catch rate of 2.9 fish/net was the highest on record for Sucker Lake and better than average compared to other similar lakes. Lengths ranged from 22 to 40 inches with an average of 28 inches. The average and max lengths were both very good for Sucker Lake. The average weight was just over 5 pounds which was quite high compared to other similar lakes throughout the state as well as within the area.

The cisco gillnet catch rate was 32 fish/net which was above average for surveys on Sucker Lake and quite high when compared to other cisco lakes in the area. Lengths ranged from 7 to 15 inches with an average of 11 inches.

Smallmouth bass, yellow perch, white sucker, and rock bass were also sampled in gill nets. Their catch rates and sizes were similar to past surveys.

Rusty crayfish are a non-native invasive species that were first sampled in 1989 in Sucker Lake. They were likely first introduced to the Moose Chain of Lakes in anglers' bait buckets. In 2018, the rusty crayfish catch rate was 86.2/net. This catch rate is similar to past surveys.

What is the average air temp for Sucker Lake?