Roland Lake Fishing Guide, Douglas County, Minnesota

• Overview

  You will find Roland Lake in Douglas County, Minnesota. The land about it is lake country bush. Roughly 89 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. The edge runs 1.3 miles or so, easy to work in an afternoon. Starbuck is the closest place, 16 miles off. After that come Morris at 17 miles and Alexandria at 18 miles. Being near a boundary, it pays to know which side you are fishing.

• Where to Fish on Roland Lake

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Survey and observation records for Douglas County include largemouth bass, common carp, bluegill, yellow perch and northern pike. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. The near bank of Roland Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 70°F in July and bottoms out near 9°F in January. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. Expect a solid lid for months and a thaw around mid April. Average temperatures cross freezing around mid April in spring and again near late November in autumn. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. Expect Roland Lake to follow that timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No slipway, car park or made path shows up nearby in mapping, so treat access as rough. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Reed Lake sits 2.1 miles off and takes the overflow. Nothing here settles the position at Roland Lake for certain.