Fishing at Coot Lake, Lake County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Set in Lake County, Minnesota, this is Coot Lake. The bank is 1,601 feet above sea level. At 6 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. It is a small entry by Lake County standards. Grand Marais is the closest place, 37 miles off. Ely lies 38 miles off, Babbitt another 45 miles. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on Coot Lake

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Fish documented in Lake County include white sucker, yellow perch, northern pike, rainbow trout and walleye. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. On Coot Lake a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 5°F in January to roughly 64°F in July. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around late April. Ice clears near late April and comes back about mid November in a typical year. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. The season on Coot Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. The map shows no ramp or car park nearby, so this is a walk-in water. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. Should this one be busy, Shoveller Lake is 0.2 miles off. Nothing here settles the position at Coot Lake for certain.