Minnesota · Sherburne County

Ann Lake Fishing guide

Ann Lake covers 183 acres in Sherburne County, Minnesota, reaching 26 ft at its deepest point. Secchi readings average around 13 ft of visibility. The Minnesota DNR has surveyed the lake 6 times, most recently in 2019, with walleye, largemouth bass, northern pike and bluegill in the nets. That survey is 7 years old now.

Open the live map → Survey data

Depth to 26 ft · top 5 summer marks

Surface183 ac

Max depth26 ft

Mean7.9 ft

Clarity13 ft

Littoral75%

Surveyed2019

How to fish Ann Lake through the year

Northern pike

Spring: Pike are in the shallow bays and along new weed growth. At 13 ft of clarity, fish them deeper and lighter than usual.
Early summer: Pike are on the outside weed edge and points.
Summer: Pike are on the deep weed edge and points near the coolest water they can find. With 75% of this lake 15 ft or shallower, the weed edge is the main event.
Fall: Pike are on the last green weeds and the breaks beside them, feeding heavily as the water drops.

Walleye

Spring: Walleye are shallow, on and just off the spawning flats and the first green weeds. At 13 ft of clarity, fish them deeper and lighter than usual.
Early summer: Walleye are setting up on the outside weed edge, points and shallow structure.
Summer: Walleye are working the weed edge, points and any wind-blown structure. With 75% of this lake 15 ft or shallower, the weed edge is the main event.
Fall: Walleye are packing onto the sharpest breaks and points as the water cools, in big schools with short windows.

Season patterns for each species. Open the live map for today's wind, light and water temp.

Size history

Biggest fish by survey year

Survey year	Northern pike	Walleye	Largemouth bass
2019	36"	—	20"
2011	29"	—	18"
2001	32"	—	15"

Longest fish measured by DNR survey crews in each year's nets. Survey gear samples the population, so the lake usually holds larger fish than any survey measured.

Suggested tackle

What to bring

Top presentations for this lake's structure and clarity:

Northern pike · Soft plastics

Paddletail Swimbait on Jighead

4–5" paddletail swimbait on a ball-head swimbait jighead

3–25 ftmoderate

Shop paddletail swimbaits →

Northern pike · Muskie & pike

Soft Rubber (Bull Dawg / Medusa)

10" soft rubber body bait

3–25 ftslow

Shop musky rubber →

Walleye · Live bait

Slip Bobber + Leech

jumbo or large leech

4–20 ftdead slow

Shop octopus hooks →

Walleye · Trolling

Snap Weights + Stickbaits

4–5" suspending or slow-floating stickbait

10–35 fttrolling

Shop trolling stickbaits →

Largemouth bass · Soft plastics

Texas-Rigged Worm

7" ribbon-tail or straight-tail plastic worm

1–25 ftdead slow

Shop plastic worms →

Largemouth bass · Soft plastics

Free Rig

Creature bait or magnum finesse worm

8–30 ftdead slowweedless

Shop creature baits →

Full setups, including hooks, weights and line, are on the live map. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

MN DNR · in their words

From the 2019 survey

Ann Lake is located in Sherburne County, five miles west of Zimmerman. The lake is 184 acres with a maximum depth of 26 feet. The watershed is small and is dominated by forest and the lake is lightly developed. The lake has excellent water quality and a diverse aquatic plant community. A public access is located on the northwest corner of the lake. A state forest campground and beach are located on the west side of the lake. A standard survey was completed in 2019 to update fisheries data last collected in 2011.

The Northern Pike catch rate was higher than the last survey and above the expected range of values for lakes similar to Ann. Pike ranged in length from nine (9) to 36 inches with a mean length and weight of 22 inches and three (3) pounds.

Read the full DNR narrative

Largemouth bass were sampled by daytime electrofishing in May 2019. The catch rate was higher than the previous survey in 2011. Although the catch rate was below average for the Sauk Rapids Management Area, electrofishing was not possible in the shallow, heavily vegetated south basin, likely reducing the number sampled. Fifty-seven bass were sampled and ranged in length from seven (7) to 21 inches. Anglers should have opportunities to catch quality-sized bass as over half of the fish were longer than 15 inches.

The number of bluegill was lower than in 2011, but still very high and well above the expected range of values for lakes similar to Ann. The average length was five (5) inches and the largest bluegill was seven (7) inches.

Few Black Crappie were sampled in 2019. Past survey catch rates have also been consistently low and no crappies were sampled in the previous survey. Crappies ranged in length from seven (7) to nine (9) inches with an average length of eight (8) inches.

Yellow Perch catch rates have also been consistently low and only one (1) perch was sampled measuring eight (8) inches. The catch rate was below the range of expected values for the lake class. Five (5) perch were sampled in the previous survey.

Yellow Bullhead were again sampled in high numbers and were good-sized. Ann Lake has consistently supported Yellow Bullhead at rates exceeding the expected range of values for lake class. Anglers should have opportunities to catch quality-sized Yellow Bullhead as fish sampled ranged in length from six (6) to 15 inches with an average length of 11 inches. Other species sampled included: Black and Brown Bullhead, Hybrid Sunfish, and Pumpkinseed.

Narrative text from the Minnesota DNR lake survey.

Recent reports

Ann Lake fishing reports

Recent reports on Ann Lake from guides, tournaments and regular anglers. Anything posted in the last two weeks also bumps the matching spots on the live map, so you'll see a "matches a recent report" tag on them.

Open the live map → Fished it lately? Write a report

Sherburne County reports

Public water access

Getting on the water

Ann Lake (trailer launch)

DNR bathymetry

Ann Lake depth map

Ann Lake depth contour map, Sherburne County, Minnesota — Depth contours to 26 ft from Minnesota DNR bathymetry, free to save or print. The live map adds ranked spots and conditions on the same contours.

Within 30 miles

Nearby lakes

Birch Lake · 160 ac · 3.3 mi
Eagle Lake · 462 ac · 3.4 mi
Elk Lake · 362 ac · 5.5 mi
Fremont Lake · 493 ac · 5.9 mi
Mitchell Lake · 170 ac · 6.2 mi
Big Lake · 254 ac · 6.6 mi
West Hunter Lake · 61 ac · 8.3 mi
East Hunter Lake · 57 ac · 8.5 mi

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions

How deep is Ann Lake?

Ann Lake reaches 26 ft at its deepest point with a mean depth of 7.9 ft; about 75% of the lake is littoral (15 ft or shallower).

How big is Ann Lake?

Ann Lake covers 183 acres with about 4.6 miles of shoreline.

How clear is the water in Ann Lake?

DNR Secchi readings on Ann Lake average 13 ft of visibility, clear water for a Minnesota lake.

What fish are in Ann Lake?

Minnesota DNR surveys (most recently 2019) record walleye, largemouth bass, northern pike, bluegill, crappie, yellow perch.

Is Ann Lake stocked?

No stocking is on record for Ann Lake in the DNR's stocking database.

Does Ann Lake have a public access?

Yes. Ann Lake has one public access site: Ann Lake (trailer launch).

How big do northern pike get in Ann Lake?

The biggest northern pike measured in recent DNR surveys taped 36"; the size-history table on this page tracks the biggest fish in each survey back to 2001.

When was Ann Lake last surveyed?

The Minnesota DNR last surveyed Ann Lake in 2019, the most recent of 6 surveys on record. A survey that old is a starting point, not a current reading.

Page updated September 22, 2026.

The live map adds today's conditions and ranked spots for Ann Lake, plus a trip plan you can share:

Open Ann Lake on the live map → Fished it lately? Write a report