Hand Lake Fishing Guide, Cook County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Look for Hand Lake in the Cook County part of Minnesota. Height above sea level is 2,001 feet. It runs to roughly 81 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. About 1.5 miles of bank, so nothing stays unexplored for long. Compared with other Minnesota water on our list, it sits high. Some 13 miles away sits Grand Marais, the nearest settlement. The nearest city of size is Thunder Bay, 67 miles away. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Hand Lake

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Reported across Cook County: white sucker, yellow perch, northern pike, rainbow trout and walleye. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. The shape of Hand Lake decides where the fish sit.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate records put July near 63°F and January near 6°F. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from late April. The season between ice runs from about late April to mid November. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. Plan around that when you fish Hand Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Access points are not mapped for this water, which suits people who like quiet. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Thrush Lake sits 0.7 miles off and takes the overflow. None of that is settled for Hand Lake in what we hold.