Fishing at Hartnette Lake, Todd County, Minnesota

• Overview

  You will find Hartnette Lake in Todd County, Minnesota. This is lake country bush country. It runs to roughly 27 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. Bank access stretches around 0.8 miles in total. It is a small entry by Todd County standards. For supplies, Sauk Centre is 6.2 miles out. Then Melrose, 6.5 miles, and Long Prairie, 14 miles. The boundary is close enough to be worth checking before you fish.

• Where to Fish on Hartnette Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Across Todd County, recorded fish include largemouth bass, bluegill, black crappie, northern pike and yellow perch. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. On Hartnette Lake a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 71°F and January about 9°F. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. After early April the shallows warm and the fish move up. The season between ice runs from about early April to late November. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. It holds true on Hartnette Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Nothing formal is recorded here: no ramp, no car park, no marked path. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Stub Lakes at 0.9 miles is the sensible second choice. For Hartnette Lake in particular, ask before you travel.