Ham Lake Fishing in Cook County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Out in Cook County, Minnesota, sits Ham Lake. Height above sea level is 1,693 feet. With some 116 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Roughly 2.6 miles of bank means you can walk to a fresh area when one goes quiet. Size puts it in the front rank of our Cook County list. Grand Marais sits 31 miles from the bank. Ely lies 50 miles off, Silver Bay another 57 miles. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Ham Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Open biodiversity records for Cook County list white sucker, yellow perch, northern pike and rainbow trout. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. At Ham Lake the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about 4°F and July at about 64°F, the water has a wide range to work through. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around late April. Ice usually gives way near late April, and forms again about mid November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Ham Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. A campsite is mapped about half a mile away, which makes an early start easier. 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. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. Snipe Lake at 1.4 miles is the sensible second choice. Nothing here settles the position at Ham Lake for certain.