North Lake Fishing Guide, McHenry County, North Dakota

• Overview

  Out in McHenry County, North Dakota, sits North Lake. What surrounds it is pine and birch. It measures some 783 acres, and wind has room to build across it. There is roughly 3.8 miles of bank, more than one visit can cover properly. Surrey sits 19 miles from the bank. Then Velva, 22 miles, and Minot, 26 miles. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on North Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Survey and observation records for McHenry County include white sucker, bluegill and largemouth bass. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. Read North Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 69°F in July and bottom out at 6°F in January. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Ice is part of the season here, ending near mid April. The season between ice runs from about mid April to late November. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Time your trip to North Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Public mapping records no formal access here, so plan for a walk and soft ground. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Season dates differ by species, so read the table. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Buffalo Lodge Lake, 2.8 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Check the position on North Lake before loading the car.