If you are looking for a quiet place away from the city, this is the perfect place. Lac qui Parle is located on the Upper Minnesota River in western Minnesota near the South Dakota border. Minneapolis, the nearest major metropolitan area, is 120 miles away.
For all fishers, Lac qui Parle is known as the best walleye fishing place in Western Minnesota because the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources annually stocks the lake with walleye. There is also catfish, bluegill, small mouth bass and northern pike.
Boating, picnic areas, rest rooms, hiking trails and playgrounds are available. There are a total of 19 boat accesses (including canoe portages).
It is also a great place to view wildlife. The Prairie Pot Hole Region is made of many small wetlands which can feed and shelter wildlife all year long. A flock of white pelican, rare to this part of the country, uses it as breeding grounds.
Hunting is also allowed. There are Canadian geese, mallard ducks, ring-necked pheasants, Hungarian partridge and the white-tailed deer in which you are able to hunt. Be sure to check with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for restrictions and regulations regarding public hunting.
Dam Specifications
Lac Qui Parle Dam
Length -- 4,100 feet
Height -- 32 feet
Outlet -- 12' to 17' bays -- 4 gated
Marsh Lake Dam
Length -- 11,800 feet
Height -- 19.5 feet
Outlet -- 112' fix crest weir with 2' x 2' gated conduit
Highway 75 Dam
Length -- 16,250 feet
Height -- 23 feet
Outlet -- 65' bascule leaf gate
Chippewa Diversion
Outlet 1 - 8' tainter gate and 4 - 27' fixed crest bays, Low Flow 4' x 4' gated conduit.