Stony Lake Fishing Guide, Benson County, North Dakota

• Overview

  In North Dakota, Stony Lake falls inside Benson County. Elevation runs to 1,490 feet. At about 121 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. Shoreline comes to about 2.5 miles, small enough to learn in a day. The closest town, Fort Totten, is 14 miles away. Then New Rockford, 22 miles, and Devils Lake, 22 miles. No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Stony Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Records held for Benson County cover black bullhead, white bass and northern pike. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. On Stony Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages here run 68°F at the top of summer and 5°F at the bottom of winter. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid April. On the long-run averages the water opens up around mid April and starts locking again about late November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. That is the shape of the year on Stony Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. For a change of water, Round Lake is 4.6 miles distant. Check the current arrangement for Stony Lake.