Lake Osakis fishing: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye

Target species: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Freshwater Drum, Black Bullhead, White Sucker
Boat: 3 ramps and launches on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Osakis Lake (S) Public Water Access Site, 2 lanes.

The lake

Lake Osakis covers 6,346 acres in Minnesota, across 2 counties: Todd and Douglas. It is a lake: 91.8% of it is 33 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 60 feet (18.3 m). Our records hold 18 species for this water.

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 60 ft (18.3 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 91.8% of the water is 33 feet or shallower. We hold 93 depth contour lines for this water.

  • 0–3 ft: 10.7% of the water
  • 3–6 ft: 10.8% of the water
  • 6–9 ft: 10.1% of the water
  • 9–12 ft: 12.9% of the water
  • 12–15 ft: 8.6% of the water
  • 15–18 ft: 5.8% of the water
  • 18–21 ft: 5% of the water
  • 21–24 ft: 5.5% of the water
  • 24–27 ft: 6.3% of the water
  • 27–30 ft: 8.8% of the water
  • 30–33 ft: 7.3% of the water
  • 33–36 ft: 2.6% of the water
  • 36–39 ft: 1.1% of the water
  • 39–42 ft: 0.8% of the water
  • 42–45 ft: 0.7% of the water
  • 45–48 ft: 0.7% of the water
  • 48–51 ft: 0.8% of the water
  • 51–54 ft: 0.6% of the water
  • 54–57 ft: 0.3% of the water
  • 57–60 ft: 0.5% of the 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.
  • Freshwater Drum — Feeding water: 60–75°F.
  • Black Bullhead — Feeding water: 70–80°F.
  • White Sucker — Feeding water: 50–70°F.

Also recorded here: Black Crappie, Bluegill, Cisco, Rock Bass, Yellow Perch, Green Sunfish, Pumpkinseed, Bowfin, Brown Bullhead, Yellow Bullhead, Common Carp.

Water and conditions

Our water temperature readings average 69°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. pH averages 8.2. These readings span 2017–2025.

Aerial imagery: USDA NAIP 2021
USDA Farm Service Agency, NAIP 2021 aerial imagery (USGS The National Map) · Public domain

3 ramps and launches on this water

On this water we hold 3 trailer ramps.

  • Osakis Lake (S) Public Water Access Site — 2 lanes, restrooms. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
  • Osakis Lake (NW) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
  • Osakis Lake, Battle Point Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. Todd 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

Wind is the limit, not the fish: 6,346 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.
  • 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.