Fifth Lake, Minnesota: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Fifth Lake is a Stearns County water, in Minnesota. Height above sea level is 1,168 feet. Roughly 76 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. Roughly 1.4 miles of bank means you can walk to a fresh area when one goes quiet. Albany sits 3 miles from the bank. The big place round here is Minneapolis, 75 miles distant. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Fifth Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Stearns County records list largemouth bass, bluegill, northern pike, walleye and black crappie among the fish reported. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. Anyone new to Fifth Lake should walk it once before setting up.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is 10°F to 71°F. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Break-up comes around early April, and the run that follows is short and strong. In an average year the thaw lands around early April and the freeze near late November. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. Fifth Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. The map shows no ramp or car park nearby, so this is a walk-in water. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. Should this one be busy, Sand Lake is 0.9 miles off. For Fifth Lake in particular, ask before you travel.