Oxbow Lake Fishing Guide, Cass County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Out in Cass County, Minnesota, sits Oxbow Lake. The ground around here is pine and birch. With some 69 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Bank access stretches around 1.6 miles in total. Start from Crosslake, 18 miles down the road. After that come Breezy Point at 25 miles and Aitkin at 26 miles. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Oxbow Lake

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Reported across Cass County: largemouth bass, yellow perch and bluegill. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. Fish Oxbow Lake to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 67°F; the cold one sits at 6°F. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. After mid April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Averages suggest open water from about mid April through to roughly late November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. On Oxbow Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. No built facilities appear in mapping around this water. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Wren Lake sits 0.5 miles off and takes the overflow. Ask locally about Oxbow Lake if anything is unclear.