Fishing Bon Lake in Otter Tail County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Bon Lake is one of the Otter Tail County waters in Minnesota. Elevation runs to 1,414 feet. It runs to roughly 33 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. On size it sits at the modest end of our Otter Tail County list. Pelican Rapids sits 8.8 miles from the bank. It is 48 miles to Fargo, the nearest city. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Bon Lake

  We hold no depth figure for this one. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Species logged across Otter Tail County include largemouth bass, black crappie and walleye. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. On Bon Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 6°F in January and 69°F in July. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from mid April. The season between ice runs from about mid April to late November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. It sets the rhythm of the year at Bon Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. For a change of water, Wilson Lake is 0.4 miles distant. Nothing here settles the position at Bon Lake for certain.