Fishing at Bezhik Lake, Saint Louis County, Minnesota

• Overview

  In Minnesota, Bezhik Lake falls inside Saint Louis County. It sits in lake country bush country. It runs to roughly 76 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. Around 1.4 miles of margin, front to back. Some 15 miles away sits Ely, the nearest settlement. Thunder Bay is the closest city, 135 miles away. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Bezhik Lake

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Across Saint Louis County, recorded fish include yellow perch, northern pike, white sucker, rainbow trout and walleye. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. Take Bezhik Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages here run 65°F at the top of summer and 2°F at the bottom of winter. A solid cap is the normal state through winter. Count the season from break-up, usually late April. Break-up near late April, freeze-up near mid November: that is the shape of an average year. The middle of summer slows a little, with dawn and dusk carrying it. It holds true on Bezhik Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. 1 takes in this water; protected-area rules will apply. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Neesh Lake, 0.5 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing here settles the position at Bezhik Lake for certain.