Cherry Lake in Kandiyohi County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Within Kandiyohi County, Minnesota, you have Cherry Lake. Everything around it is mixed forest. It measures about 51 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. There is roughly 1.2 miles of shoreline here, which is a short walk end to end. It is a small entry by Kandiyohi County standards. Atwater lies 7.2 miles from the water. Minneapolis is the closest city, 79 miles away. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Cherry Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Kandiyohi County records list walleye, northern pike, common carp, largemouth bass and yellow perch among the fish reported. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. On Cherry Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 72°F; by January the average is down near 10°F. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about early April. The open-water window runs from around early April to about late November in an average year. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. Cherry Lake runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Nothing in the way of made access shows up nearby: no ramp, no car park, no path. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Kasota Lake, 1.5 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Where Cherry Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.