Nickel Lake Fishing in Lake County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Lake County, Minnesota, is where Nickel Lake sits. The water sits 1,483 feet up. It covers about 23 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. The town to know is Ely, 12 miles out. The big place round here is Thunder Bay, 116 miles distant. Also worth knowing: Omaday Lake 0.9 miles off, Bogberry Lake some 1.9 miles off, Little Gabbro Lake 2.1 miles off, Bruin Lake some 2.2 miles off and Gabbro Lake 2.7 miles off. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Nickel Lake

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Open biodiversity records for Lake County list white sucker, yellow perch and northern pike. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. Fish Nickel Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 65°F and January near 4°F. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. Break-up comes around late April, and the run that follows is short and strong. The season between ice runs from about late April to late November. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. It sets the rhythm of the year at Nickel Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Failing this one, try Omaday Lake, 0.9 miles away. Ask locally about Nickel Lake if anything is unclear.