Fishing Reese Lake in Otter Tail County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Otter Tail County, Minnesota, is where Reese Lake sits. The surface lies 1,447 feet up. The water covers some 54 acres, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. The whole outline is near 1.9 miles, and most of it is walkable. Parkers Prairie sits 1.9 miles from the bank. After that come Alexandria at 18 miles and Osakis at 22 miles. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Reese Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Open biodiversity records for Otter Tail County list largemouth bass, black crappie, walleye and bluegill. Species recorded across the county may be limited to a few waters. Reese Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 69°F, with January the cold end at about 7°F. Cold winters and warm summers give a wide working range. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around mid April. Climate averages put the opening at about mid April and the closing near late November. The first weeks of open water and the last are the ones to plan for. Plan any trip to Reese Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. The map shows no ramp or car park nearby, so this is a walk-in water. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Clarno Lake, 0.5 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Rules at Reese Lake are worth checking on the day.