Fishing at Bone Lake, Bottineau County, North Dakota

• Overview

  Bottineau County, North Dakota, is where Bone Lake sits. The surroundings are lake country bush. Small at around 19 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. Most waters listed here for Bottineau County are larger. 12 miles away sits Bottineau, the nearest town. Beyond it, Deloraine at 14 miles and Boissevain at 21 miles. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Bone Lake

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Across Bottineau County, recorded fish include bluegill, brown bullhead and northern pike. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Bone Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 65°F and January about 2°F. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from late April. The water is typically free of ice between late April and mid November. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. It holds true on Bone Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. It is recorded as intermittent, which means the basin empties in dry spells. Mapping shows an empty shoreline: no ramp, no jetty, no marked entry. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Five Lake sits 0.7 miles off and takes the overflow. For Bone Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.