Long Lake in Rolette County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Within Rolette County, North Dakota, you have Long Lake. This is lake country bush ground. With some 48 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The bank runs about 1.5 miles all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. Belcourt sits 8.5 miles from the bank. The big place round here is Winnipeg, 136 miles distant. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Long Lake

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. 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. County-wide records name bluegill, northern pike, white bass, yellow perch and johnny darter. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Long Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 65°F in July and bottom out at 1°F in January. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Hard water holds through the cold months, breaking up near late April. Climate averages put the opening at about late April and the closing near mid November. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. Long Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing in our records says who may fish here. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Oak Lakes, 0.8 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing here settles the position at Long Lake for certain.