Finley Lake in Itasca County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Finley Lake is an Itasca County water, in Minnesota. It stands 1,335 feet above sea level. At about 33 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. Keewatin lies 28 miles from the water. The nearest city of size is Fargo, 165 miles away. Neighbouring water: Erickson Lake just 1.2 miles, Bass Lake a shade over 1.4 miles, Homestead Lake just 1.5 miles, Gale Lake a shade over 1.7 miles and Anderson Lake just 2.7 miles. No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Finley Lake

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Survey and observation records for Itasca County include yellow perch, largemouth bass and northern pike. County data is a starting point rather than a guarantee. Finley Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 66°F on average, January about 4°F. Hard water is a season in its own right here. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid April. Climate averages put the opening at about mid April and the closing near mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Finley Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Season dates differ by species, so read the table. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Failing this one, try Erickson Lake, 1.2 miles away. Confirm before you fish Finley Lake.