Clear Lake fishing: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye

Target species: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Black Bullhead, White Sucker, Black Crappie
Boat: 1 ramp or launch on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Clear Lake Public Water Access Site, 1 lane.

The lake

Clear Lake covers 370 acres in Minnesota, across Otter Tail County. It is a lake: the deepest point measured is at least 25 feet (7.6 m). Our records hold 12 species for this water.

7 target fish, led by Northern Pike

  • Northern Pike — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • Largemouth Bass — Feeding water: 65–85°F.
  • Walleye — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • Smallmouth Bass — Feeding water: 60–75°F.
  • Black Bullhead — Feeding water: 70–80°F.
  • White Sucker — Feeding water: 50–70°F.
  • Black Crappie — Feeding water: 65–75°F.

Also recorded here: Bluegill, Yellow Perch, Pumpkinseed, Brown Bullhead, Yellow Bullhead.

Sunset over North Shore of Clear Lake.jpg
Readthisandlearn · CC BY-SA 3.0

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 25 ft (7.6 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. We hold 39 depth contour lines for this water.

  • 0–2 ft: 1.1% of the water
  • 2–4 ft: 5.1% of the water
  • 4–6 ft: 5.9% of the water
  • 6–8 ft: 7.6% of the water
  • 8–10 ft: 7.7% of the water
  • 10–12 ft: 7.2% of the water
  • 12–14 ft: 6.8% of the water
  • 14–16 ft: 6.9% of the water
  • 16–18 ft: 7.9% of the water
  • 18–20 ft: 7.4% of the water
  • 20–22 ft: 7% of the water
  • 22–24 ft: 9.1% of the water
  • 24–25 ft: 20.2% of the water

Water and conditions

Water clarity runs 4–14.6 feet on our readings, averaging 8.7 feet, from 117 readings. Our water temperature readings average 71°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. pH averages 8.7. These readings span 2017–2025.

1 ramp or launch on this water

On this water we hold 1 trailer ramp.

  • Clear Lake Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.

The place listed has no fee or opening hours on file: 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

Clarity swings from 4 to 14.6 feet between our readings — the water you meet is not the water someone photographed. Only 1 public ramp is on file, so the launch decides where you fish.

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.
  • 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.