Fishing Swollen Ankle Lake in Cook County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Cook County in Minnesota is where Swollen Ankle Lake sits. Height above sea level is 1,791 feet. At roughly 11 acres, the whole thing is within casting reach of a single walk. It is a small entry by Cook County standards. Grand Marais lies 29 miles from the water. For a city, Thunder Bay is 75 miles off. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Swollen Ankle Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. 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. Species logged across Cook County include white sucker, yellow perch and northern pike. County data is a starting point rather than a guarantee. The near bank of Swollen Ankle Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from 4°F in January up to 64°F in July. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near late April. The lid tends to go about late April and return around mid November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. It sets the rhythm of the year at Swollen Ankle Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. Part of this sits inside or beside 3, so read the notices. 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. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Fool Lake, 0.4 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Confirm before you fish Swollen Ankle Lake.