Fishing at Little Neck Lake, Itasca County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Set in Itasca County, Little Neck Lake is a Minnesota water. It stands 1,352 feet above sea level. Roughly 38 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. Head to Coleraine, 24 miles away, for anything you forgot. Fargo is the closest city, 162 miles away. Water in the same corner: Lebarge Lake at 0.8 miles, Canoe Lake sits 0.9 miles out, East Lake at 1.2 miles, Slauson Lake sits 1.2 miles out and Little East Lake at 1.4 miles. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Little Neck Lake

  Open data we checked carries no depth for this water. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. County-wide records name yellow perch, largemouth bass and northern pike. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. Little Neck Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 66°F, with January the cold end at about 4°F. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. The lid usually goes in mid April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Break-up near mid April, freeze-up near late November: that is the shape of an average year. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. That shapes the year on Little Neck Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Formal access is not mapped, so the last stretch is likely on foot. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Lebarge Lake at 0.8 miles is the sensible second choice. Nothing on Little Neck Lake should be assumed from this page alone.