Pauline Lake Fishing Guide, Saint Louis County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Pauline Lake falls in Saint Louis County, part of Minnesota. It sits at 1,312 feet above sea level. With some 64 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. About 1.4 miles of bank, so nothing stays unexplored for long. You are 26 miles from Ely. Babbitt lies 34 miles off, Aurora another 41 miles. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on Pauline Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Across Saint Louis County, recorded fish include yellow perch, northern pike and white sucker. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. At Pauline Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 65°F; by January the average is down near 3°F. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. The lid usually goes in late April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Ice usually gives way near late April, and forms again about mid November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Pauline Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. There is a campsite half a mile from the water. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. For a change of water, Nigh Lake is 0.6 miles distant. Signs at Pauline Lake carry more weight than any list.