Pickerel Lake in Anoka County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Set in Anoka County, Pickerel Lake is a Minnesota water. The setting is rolling bush. At about 234 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. Shoreline comes to about 2.4 miles, small enough to learn in a day. By elevation it sits in the lower part of our Minnesota listings. Some 1.3 miles away sits Nowthen, the nearest settlement. It is 26 miles to Minneapolis, the nearest city. Two sets of local rules meet not far from this water.

• Where to Fish on Pickerel Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. County-wide records name bluegill, common carp, black crappie and largemouth bass. Species recorded across the county may be limited to a few waters. Pickerel Lake gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 11°F in January and 71°F in July. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. Look for the thaw near early April; the fishing lifts straight after. Expect the water usable from around early April until roughly late November. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. Pickerel Lake runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Parking is not close: half a mile from the bank, and no nearer option is mapped. Mapping shows a campsite some half a mile from the water. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Bass Lake sits 0.8 miles off and takes the overflow. Confirm before you fish Pickerel Lake.