Fishing Lake Emily in Meeker County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Lake Emily sits in Meeker County, out in Minnesota. What surrounds it is lake country bush. It runs to roughly 76 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. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Meeker County. Hutchinson is the closest place, 5.3 miles off. Dassel is 8.6 miles away, with Cokato at 11 miles. It sits near the edge of the county, so check which rules apply.

• Where to Fish on Lake Emily

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Across Meeker County, recorded fish include largemouth bass, walleye, northern pike, common carp and bluegill. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Read Lake Emily before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 72°F and January near 11°F on the long-run figures. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Hard water holds through the cold months, breaking up near early April. Open water usually runs from early April until about late November. Fish feed hardest at the start and the close of the open season. It holds true on Lake Emily more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Mapping shows a jetty some half a mile off. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. If the gate is shut, Little Bear Lake at 0.6 miles is the nearest alternative. Where Lake Emily is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.