Ed Shave Lake Fishing Guide, Saint Louis County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Saint Louis County in Minnesota is where Ed Shave Lake sits. The surface lies 1,457 feet up. It runs to roughly 90 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. About 1.9 miles of bank, so nothing stays unexplored for long. Nearest place of any size is Ely, 12 miles away. Babbitt lies 25 miles off, Hoyt Lakes another 39 miles. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Ed Shave Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Reported across Saint Louis County: yellow perch, northern pike, white sucker, rainbow trout and walleye. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. On Ed Shave Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 65°F, the coldest about 2°F. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. Once it clears, about late April, the fishing comes on quickly. Climate figures give an open season running late April to mid November. Fish feed hardest at the start and the close of the open season. The season on Ed Shave Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Ed Shave Lake Public Water Access Site provides a boat ramp about half a mile away. A parking area is marked roughly half a mile out. A platform or pier sits within half a mile. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Chorus Lake, 1.1 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Rules at Ed Shave Lake are worth checking on the day.