Fishing at Serpent Lake, Lake County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Minnesota holds Serpent in Lake County. It sits in pine and birch. At 8 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. Our Lake County list holds plenty of bigger water. For a base, Ely sits 37 miles out. Thunder Bay is the closest city, 88 miles away. Neighbouring water: Loki Lake 0.3 miles, Pear Lake about 0.4 miles, Harness Lake 0.6 miles, Twilight Lake about 0.6 miles and Tradition Lake 0.7 miles. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Serpent Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Reported across Lake County: white sucker, yellow perch and northern pike. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. Take Serpent Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 64°F and January reads 4°F. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. Once it clears, about late April, the fishing comes on quickly. From about late April to around mid November, expect open water on the long-run figures. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. The season on Serpent Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. A campsite lies half a mile away for anyone staying over. 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. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. Loki Lake, 0.3 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Check the current arrangement for Serpent Lake.