Minnesota · Washington County

Forest Lake Fishing guide

Forest Lake covers 2,271 acres in Washington County, Minnesota, reaching 37 ft at its deepest point. Secchi readings average around 5.6 ft of visibility. The Minnesota DNR has surveyed the lake 20 times, most recently in 2025, with walleye, largemouth bass, northern pike and muskellunge in the nets.

Open the live map → Survey data

Depth to 37 ft · top 5 summer marks

Surface2,271 ac

Max depth37 ft

Clarity5.6 ft

Littoral67%

Surveyed2025

How to fish Forest Lake through the year

Walleye

Spring: Walleye are shallow, on and just off the spawning flats and the first green weeds.
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 67% 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.

Largemouth bass

Spring: Largemouth are moving up into the warming bays and flats, staging around wood, docks and new weeds to spawn.
Early summer: Largemouth are on the shallow spawning flats and protected bays, where beds go on firm bottom next to isolated cover.
Summer: Largemouth are in and along the weeds: cabbage and milfoil edges, matted cover and shade. With 67% of this lake 15 ft or shallower, the weed edge is the main event.
Fall: Largemouth are chasing bait back onto the flats and into the remaining green weeds, feeding hard and shallow before the freeze.

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	Walleye	Largemouth bass	Northern pike
2025	27"	16"	36"
2023	26"	16"	34"
2021	24"	16"	34"
2019	27"	16"	34"
2017	27"	14"	32"
2016	27"	18"	33"
2015	29"	18"	33"
2013	25"	11"	33"

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:

Walleye · Live bait

Live-Bait (Lindy) Rig + Leech/Crawler

jumbo leech or half a nightcrawler

8–35 ftslow

Shop octopus hooks →

Walleye · Trolling

Leadcore Line + Crankbaits

4–5" mid-diving crankbait behind a long leadcore run

15–45 fttrolling

Shop deep-diving crankbaits →

Largemouth bass · Hardbaits

Topwater Popper

2.5–3" concave-face popper

0–8 ftdead slow

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Largemouth bass · Hardbaits

Hollow-Body Frog

3–3.5" hollow-body frog

0–6 ftslow

Shop hollow-body frogs →

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 →

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

DNR stocking records

Stocking history

Year	Species	Stocked
2025	Muskellunge	153 yearlings
2025	Walleye	383,000 fry · 4,434 fingerlings · 1,701 yearlings · 172 adults
2024	Muskellunge	766 fingerlings
2024	Walleye	783,000 fry · 18,990 fingerlings · 616 yearlings
2023	Muskellunge	222 fingerlings
2023	Walleye	26,456 fingerlings
2022	Muskellunge	766 fingerlings
2022	Walleye	52,678 fingerlings · 10 yearlings
2020	Walleye	26,324 fingerlings
2019	Muskellunge	764 fingerlings
2019	Walleye	43,867 fingerlings
2018	Muskellunge	766 fingerlings

Stocking records before 2018 omitted.

MN DNR · in their words

From the 2025 survey

Forest Lake is a 2,251 acre lake comprised of three distinct basins and assigned to lake class 24. There are three public boat accesses available on the lake resulting in high recreational use. Zebra Mussels were discovered in 2015. The primary management species in the lake are Walleye and Muskellunge both of which are maintained through stocking. Walleyes fingerlings are stocked annually on a variable schedule of either 995 or 1531 pounds. Muskellunge are currently stocked with a target quota of 766 fingerlings per year. The lake was sampled with gill nets and trap nets in July 2025 primarily to assess the Walleye population and provide fish composition information to be used in an Index of Biotic Integrity survey. The previous survey was conducted only with gill nets in 2023.

Walleye were sampled at a rate of 7.9 fish per gill net. Fish size was larger than average for the lake class but similar to previous surveys with a mean length of 19 inches. Lengths ranged from 7.5 to 27 inches and were well distributed within that range. Ages ranged from 1 to 15 years with 7 year olds being the most abundant having twice as many sampled as any other year class. Growth appears to be adequate with age and size distributions offering quality angling opportunities.

Read the full DNR narrative

Northern Pike were sampled at a rate of 11.8 fish per gill net. This was substantially higher than the previous survey catch rate of 4.5 fish per gill net and was the highest rate sampled in the history of the lake. Fish size did not diminish with a mean length of 25.6 inches. Fish lengths ranged from 10 to 36 inches with 11% of the catch exceeding 30 inches.

Yellow Perch were sampled at a rate of 13.6 fish per gill net. This was a substantial increase over the previous survey's rate of 6.3 fish per gill net and is a more typical catch for both the lake and the lake class. Size remained small with a mean length of 6.2 inches and a maximum length of 8 inches.

Although summer trap nets were used to sample both Bluegill and Black Crappie populations for an Index of Biotic Integrity survey, spring panfish trap net surveys are best for describing Minnesota's panfish populations. Similarly, one 43.5 inch Muskellunge was sampled in trap nets but their population is better evaluated by separate spring surveys. Other species sampled during this survey were: Black Bullhead, Brown Bullhead, Common Carp, Hybrid Sunfish, Largemouth Bass, Pumpkinseed, Rock Bass, and Yellow Bullhead.

Narrative text from the Minnesota DNR lake survey.

Recent reports

Forest Lake fishing reports

Recent reports on Forest 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

Washington County reports

Public water access

Getting on the water

Forest Lake, #1 Lakeside Park (trailer launch)
Forest Lake, #2 Willow Point (trailer launch)
Forest Lake, #3 Hagberg (trailer launch)

DNR bathymetry

Forest Lake depth map

Forest Lake depth contour map, Washington County, Minnesota — Depth contours to 37 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

Shields Lake · 30 ac · 1.2 mi
Clear Lake · 429 ac · 2.5 mi
Comfort Lake · 218 ac · 3.5 mi
Bone Lake · 221 ac · 4.5 mi
Moody Lake · 45 ac · 4.5 mi
Green Lake · 1,810 ac · 4.8 mi
Big Marine Lake · 1,799 ac · 5.8 mi
Goose Lake · 76 ac · 6.9 mi

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions

How deep is Forest Lake?

Forest Lake reaches 37 ft at its deepest point; about 67% of the lake is littoral (15 ft or shallower).

How big is Forest Lake?

Forest Lake covers 2,271 acres with about 15.7 miles of shoreline.

How clear is the water in Forest Lake?

DNR Secchi readings on Forest Lake average 5.6 ft of visibility, middling clarity for a Minnesota lake.

What fish are in Forest Lake?

Minnesota DNR surveys (most recently 2025) record walleye, largemouth bass, northern pike, muskellunge, bluegill, crappie, yellow perch, rock bass.

Is Forest Lake stocked?

Yes. The DNR stocked muskellunge and walleye in 2025; the stocking table on this page lists every year back to 2018.

Does Forest Lake have a public access?

Yes. Forest Lake has 3 public access sites, including Forest Lake, #1 Lakeside Park (trailer launch).

How big do walleye get in Forest Lake?

The biggest walleye measured in recent DNR surveys taped 27"; the size-history table on this page tracks the biggest fish in each survey back to 2013.

When was Forest Lake last surveyed?

The Minnesota DNR last surveyed Forest Lake in 2025, the most recent of 20 surveys on record.

Page updated September 22, 2026.

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

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