Fishing Trip Lake in Cook County, Minnesota

• Overview

  Out in Cook County, Minnesota, sits Trip Lake. The surface lies 1,841 feet up. At 12 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Cook County. For supplies, Grand Marais is 29 miles out. The nearest city of size is Thunder Bay, 72 miles away. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Trip Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Survey and observation records for Cook County include white sucker, yellow perch, northern pike, rainbow trout and walleye. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. On Trip Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 63°F and January reads 4°F. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. Ice is part of the season here, ending near late April. Averages place the thaw at late April and the freeze at mid November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. The season on Trip Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. Launch at Loon Lake Public Water Access Site, half a mile from the water. Parking is close: a car park sits half a mile from the bank. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Look for a notice board at the entrance. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. For a change of water, Extortion Lake is 0.7 miles distant. Signs at Trip Lake carry more weight than any list.