Garden Lake fishing: Northern Pike, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass
Target species: Northern Pike, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Burbot, White Sucker, Black Crappie, Bluegill
Best months: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep for Northern Pike
Second window: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep for Walleye
Boat: 1 ramp or launch on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Garden Lake Public Water Access Site, 1 lane.
The lake
Garden Lake covers 637 acres in Minnesota, across Lake County. It is a lake: 94.1% of it is 27 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 50 feet (15.2 m). Our records hold 11 species for this water.
7 target fish, led by Northern Pike
- Northern Pike — Best months: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.
- Walleye — Best months: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.
- Smallmouth Bass — Best months: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.
- Burbot — Best months: Oct.
- White Sucker — Best months: May, Jun, Sep, Oct.
- Black Crappie — Best months: Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep.
- Bluegill — Best months: Jul, Aug.
Also recorded here: Cisco, Rock Bass, Yellow Perch, Yellow Bullhead.
Depth and bottom
Deepest measured point: at least 50 ft (15.2 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 94.1% of the water is 27 feet or shallower. We hold 87 depth contour lines for this water.
- 0–3 ft: 8.8% of the water
- 3–6 ft: 7.2% of the water
- 6–9 ft: 10.9% of the water
- 9–12 ft: 13.4% of the water
- 12–15 ft: 13.1% of the water
- 15–18 ft: 11.4% of the water
- 18–21 ft: 10.6% of the water
- 21–24 ft: 10.9% of the water
- 24–27 ft: 7.8% of the water
- 27–30 ft: 3.7% of the water
- 30–33 ft: 0.7% of the water
- 33–36 ft: 0.5% of the water
- 36–39 ft: 0.4% of the water
- 39–42 ft: 0.3% of the water
- 42–45 ft: 0.2% of the water
Water and conditions
Water clarity runs 4–6 feet on our readings, averaging 5.3 feet, from 91 readings. Water temperature averages 60°F across the year. The coldest single reading we hold is 32°F and the warmest is 80°F; the warmest monthly average is 73°F. pH averages 7.1. These readings span 2016–2025.
Monthly average water temperature: Jan 33°F · Feb 33°F · Mar 34°F · Apr 39°F · May 51°F · Jun 67°F · Jul 72°F · Aug 73°F · Sep 65°F · Oct 50°F · Nov 37°F · Dec 33°F
1 ramp or launch on this water
On this water we hold 1 trailer ramp.
- Garden Lake Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. 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.
Season by season
- Winter (Dec, Jan, Feb, 33–33°F) — Steady but no peak: Northern Pike, Walleye, Burbot, White Sucker.
- Spring (Mar, Apr, May, 34–51°F) — Biting: White Sucker. Steady but no peak: Northern Pike, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Burbot, Black Crappie.
- Summer (Jun, Jul, Aug, 67–73°F) — Biting: Northern Pike, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, White Sucker, Black Crappie, Bluegill.
- Fall (Sep, Oct, Nov, 37–65°F) — Biting: Northern Pike, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Burbot, White Sucker, Black Crappie.
What is hard here
Only 1 public ramp is on file, so the launch decides where you fish. Winter water drops to 33°F, and the warm-water species stop feeding well before you do.
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.
