Cartie Lake Fishing Guide, Aitkin County, Minnesota

• Overview

  In Minnesota, Cartie Lake belongs to Aitkin County. Country round the bank runs to pine and birch. This is a pocket water of some 20 acres, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Aitkin County. Aitkin sits 7.1 miles from the bank. The big place round here is Minneapolis, 116 miles distant. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Cartie Lake

  Open data we checked carries no depth for this water. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Records held for Aitkin County cover northern pike, bluegill, yellow perch and black crappie. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Cartie Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 68°F and January near 6°F on the long-run figures. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around mid April. Averages place the thaw at mid April and the freeze at late November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. The season on Cartie Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Parking space is the usual limit rather than the bank itself. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. If the gate is shut, Terry Lake at 0.7 miles is the nearest alternative. Where Cartie Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.