Cass Lake fishing: Northern Pike, Muskellunge, Largemouth Bass

Target species: Northern Pike, Muskellunge, Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Yellow Perch, Burbot
Boat: 5 ramps and launches on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Cass Lake, Hwy 2 Public Water Access Site, 2 lanes.

The lake

Cass Lake covers 20,751 acres in Minnesota, across 2 counties: Cass and Beltrami. It is a lake: 92.6% of it is 60 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 120 feet (36.6 m). Our records hold 20 species for this water.

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 120 ft (36.6 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 92.6% of the water is 60 feet or shallower. We hold 148 depth contour lines for this water.

  • 0–10 ft: 33.8% of the water
  • 10–20 ft: 14.4% of the water
  • 20–30 ft: 11.3% of the water
  • 30–40 ft: 13.7% of the water
  • 40–50 ft: 12.1% of the water
  • 50–60 ft: 7.3% of the water
  • 60–70 ft: 3.6% of the water
  • 70–80 ft: 1.7% of the water
  • 80–90 ft: 1.3% of the water
  • 90–100 ft: 0.3% of the water
  • 100–110 ft: 0.3% of the water
  • 110–115 ft: 0.3% of the water

7 target fish, led by Northern Pike

  • Northern Pike — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • Muskellunge — Feeding water: 65–75°F.
  • Largemouth Bass — Feeding water: 65–85°F.
  • Walleye — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • Smallmouth Bass — Feeding water: 60–75°F.
  • Yellow Perch — Feeding water: 45–75°F.
  • Burbot — Feeding water: 40–50°F.

Also recorded here: Lake Whitefish, Black Bullhead, Shorthead Redhorse, White Sucker, Black Crappie, Bluegill, Cisco, Rock Bass, Green Sunfish, Pumpkinseed, Bowfin, Brown Bullhead, Yellow Bullhead.

Water and conditions

Water clarity runs 8.6–20.7 feet on our readings, averaging 14.1 feet, from 42 readings. Our water temperature readings average 70°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. The coldest single reading we hold is 52°F and the warmest is 81°F; the warmest monthly average is 75°F. pH averages 8.2. These readings span 2017–2025.

5 ramps and launches on this water

On this water we hold 5 trailer ramps and 1 shore access point.

  • Cass Lake, Hwy 2 Public Water Access Site — 2 lanes, restrooms. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
  • Cass Lake (E) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. U.S. Forest Service. website fs.usda.gov/recarea/chippewa/recreation/camping-cabins/recarea/?recid=26684&actid=29
  • Cass Lake, Norway Beach (S) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. U.S. Forest Service. website fs.usda.gov/recarea/chippewa/recreation/camping-cabins/recarea/?recid=26708&actid=29
  • Pike Bay (N) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. Cass County.
  • Pike Bay (S) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. U.S. Forest Service.

Shore access for bank fishing

  • Mississippi River, Knutson Dam Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. U.S. Forest Service.

Fee and opening hours are blank for all 6 places in this list: a blank means we hold no such field, not that it is free or always open, and this list may not be complete.

What is hard here

Wind is the limit, not the fish: 20,751 acres of open water build a short steep chop, and there is no shelter in the middle.

Where this data comes from

  • Minnesota DNR — Minnesota DNR: depth contours: class A, a survey of the bottom.
  • Minnesota DNR — Minnesota DNR: reported depths: class B, a depth figure measured and published by an agency, without a bottom map.
  • EPA NLA — EPA National Lakes Assessment: class B, a depth figure measured and published by an agency, without a bottom map.
  • Webster, K.E., McCullough, I.M., Soranno, P.A. LAGOS-US DEPTH v1.0, EDI, doi:10.6073/pasta/64ddc4d04661d9aef4bd702dc5d8984f (CC BY 4.0); Cheruvelil et al. LAGOS-US LOCUS v1.0 (EDI) — LAGOS-US DEPTH v1.0: Lake depth for 17,675 lakes in the conterminous U.S.: class B, a depth figure measured and published by an agency, without a bottom map.