Nellies Lake, Minnesota: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Nellies Lake is set in Todd County, Minnesota. The surface lies 1,204 feet up. Surface area runs to about 19 acres — small enough to read in one session. On size it sits at the modest end of our Todd County list. 13 miles away sits Melrose, the nearest town. It is 89 miles to Minneapolis, the nearest city. Being near a boundary, it pays to know which side you are fishing.

• Where to Fish on Nellies Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Open biodiversity records for Todd County list largemouth bass, bluegill, black crappie and northern pike. The county list is broader than any single water. At Nellies Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 10°F in January and 71°F in July. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. Ice-out usually falls in early April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. The lid tends to go about early April and return around late November. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. That is the shape of the year on Nellies Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. Oak Ridge Wildlife Management Area covers this ground, which means extra rules to check. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. For a change of water, Rock Lake is 0.7 miles distant. Nothing here settles the position at Nellies Lake for certain.