Cross Lake fishing: Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Walleye

Target species: Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Bluegill, Pumpkinseed, Lake Whitefish
Boat: 3 ramps and launches on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Cross Lake #1 Public Water Access Site, 1 lane.

The reservoir

Cross Lake covers 1,772 acres in Minnesota, across Crow Wing County. It is a reservoir: 95% of it is 75 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 80 feet (24.4 m). Our records hold 18 species for this water.

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 80 ft (24.4 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 95% of the water is 75 feet or shallower. We hold 86 depth contour lines for this water.

Private pier at Cross Lake, Shreveport, LA IMG 1351.JPG
Billy Hathorn at en.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
  • 0–5 ft: 19.7% of the water
  • 5–10 ft: 14.5% of the water
  • 10–15 ft: 12.6% of the water
  • 15–20 ft: 5.4% of the water
  • 20–25 ft: 3.8% of the water
  • 25–30 ft: 3.3% of the water
  • 30–35 ft: 3.4% of the water
  • 35–40 ft: 3.5% of the water
  • 40–45 ft: 3.5% of the water
  • 45–50 ft: 3.4% of the water
  • 50–55 ft: 3.6% of the water
  • 55–60 ft: 4% of the water
  • 60–65 ft: 4% of the water
  • 65–70 ft: 5.2% of the water
  • 70–75 ft: 5.1% of the water
  • 75–80 ft: 5.1% of the water

7 target fish, led by Largemouth Bass

  • Largemouth Bass — Feeding water: 65–85°F.
  • Northern Pike — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • Walleye — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • Smallmouth Bass — Feeding water: 60–75°F.
  • Bluegill — Feeding water: 70–85°F.
  • Pumpkinseed — Feeding water: 65–80°F.
  • Lake Whitefish — Feeding water: 40–55°F.

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

Water and conditions

Water clarity runs 13.1–20.1 feet on our readings, averaging 16.6 feet, from 150 readings. Our water temperature readings average 67°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. The coldest single reading we hold is 40°F and the warmest is 80°F; the warmest monthly average is 74°F. pH averages 8.2. These readings span 2017–2025.

Cross Lake at Ford Park IMG 1348.JPG
Billy Hathorn at en.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0

3 ramps and launches on this water

On this water we hold 3 trailer ramps and 2 shore access points.

  • Cross Lake #1 Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
  • Cross Lake #2 Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
  • Crosslake Lake Public Water Access — 1 lane. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.

Shore access for bank fishing

Cross Lake near Ford Park, Shreveport, LA IMG 1349.JPG
Billy Hathorn at en.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
  • Duck Lake, Cross/Duck Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
  • Pine River, Cross Lake Public Water Access Site — restrooms. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Fee and opening hours are blank for all 5 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

Only 3 public ramps are 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.