Deer Lake fishing: Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Muskellunge

Deer Lake fishing: Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Muskellunge

Target species: Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Muskellunge, Northern Pike, Walleye, Bluegill, Yellow Perch
Boat: 2 ramps and launches on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Deer Lake Public Water Access Site, 1 lane.

The lake

Deer Lake covers 4,050 acres in Minnesota, across Itasca County. It is a lake: 93.5% of it is 80 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 100 feet (30.5 m). Our records hold 15 species for this water.

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 100 ft (30.5 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 93.5% of the water is 80 feet or shallower. We hold 231 depth contour lines for this water.

• 0–5 ft: 7.1% of the water
• 5–10 ft: 6.8% of the water
• 10–15 ft: 5.5% of the water
• 15–20 ft: 5.4% of the water
• 20–25 ft: 4.9% of the water
• 25–30 ft: 4.8% of the water
• 30–35 ft: 5.9% of the water
• 35–40 ft: 6.9% of the water
• 40–45 ft: 8% of the water
• 45–50 ft: 7.4% of the water
• 50–55 ft: 7.4% of the water
• 55–60 ft: 6% of the water
• 60–65 ft: 5.2% of the water
• 65–70 ft: 5.2% of the water
• 70–75 ft: 3.4% of the water
• 75–80 ft: 3.6% of the water
• 80–85 ft: 3.7% of the water
• 85–90 ft: 0.9% of the water
• 90–95 ft: 0.8% of the water
• 95–100 ft: 1.2% of the water

7 target fish, led by Largemouth Bass

• Largemouth Bass — Feeding water: 65–85°F.
• Smallmouth Bass — Feeding water: 60–75°F.
• Muskellunge — Feeding water: 65–75°F.
• Northern Pike — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
• Walleye — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
• Bluegill — Feeding water: 70–85°F.
• Yellow Perch — Feeding water: 45–75°F.

Also recorded here: Lake Whitefish, White Sucker, Black Crappie, Cisco, Rock Bass, Pumpkinseed, Bowfin, Yellow Bullhead.

Water and conditions

Water clarity runs 11.2–20 feet on our readings, averaging 15.4 feet, from 268 readings. Our water temperature readings average 65°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 76°F; the warmest monthly average is 73°F. pH averages 8.6. These readings span 2017–2025.

2 ramps and launches on this water

On this water we hold 2 trailer ramps and 1 shore access point.

• Deer Lake Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
• Moose Lake (S) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. Itasca County.

Shore access for bank fishing

• Little Deer Lake Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. Itasca County.

Fee and opening hours are blank for all 3 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 2 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.