Clear Lake Fishing near Eden Valley, Minnesota

• Overview

  Out in Meeker County, Minnesota, sits Clear Lake. It lies 1,122 feet above sea level. At 530 acres this is proper open water rather than a pond. Shoreline length is close to 4.6 miles, and each section fishes a little differently. On our Meeker County list it sits near the top for size. Some 6 miles away sits Eden Valley, the nearest settlement. Litchfield is 11 miles and Cold Spring 13 miles. The county edge is within a short distance of the bank.

• Where to Fish on Clear Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Across Meeker County, recorded fish include largemouth bass, walleye, northern pike and common carp. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. Fish Clear Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 72°F; the cold one sits at 10°F. A solid cap is the normal state through winter. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about early April. Averages suggest open water from about early April through to roughly late November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Plan any trip to Clear Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Public data shows nothing built here, so treat the whole approach as informal. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. For a change of water, Little Mud Lake is 0.9 miles distant. Check the position at Clear Lake before loading the car.