O'Dowd Lake fishing: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye

Target species: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Black Bullhead, Black Crappie, Bluegill, Yellow Perch
Boat: 2 ramps and launches on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at O'Dowd Lake Public Water Access Site, 1 lane.

The lake

O'Dowd Lake covers 300 acres in Minnesota, across Scott County. It is a lake: 94.1% of it is 14 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 20 feet (6.1 m). Our records hold 9 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.
  • Black Bullhead — Feeding water: 70–80°F.
  • Black Crappie — Feeding water: 65–75°F.
  • Bluegill — Feeding water: 70–85°F.
  • Yellow Perch — Feeding water: 45–75°F.

Also recorded here: Green Sunfish, Pumpkinseed.

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 20 ft (6.1 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 94.1% of the water is 14 feet or shallower. We hold 73 depth contour lines for this water.

  • 0–1 ft: 13.1% of the water
  • 1–2 ft: 6.9% of the water
  • 2–3 ft: 8.7% of the water
  • 3–4 ft: 9.5% of the water
  • 4–5 ft: 8.5% of the water
  • 5–6 ft: 8% of the water
  • 6–7 ft: 5.9% of the water
  • 7–8 ft: 6.1% of the water
  • 8–9 ft: 7% of the water
  • 9–10 ft: 5.8% of the water
  • 10–11 ft: 5.1% of the water
  • 11–12 ft: 5.1% of the water
  • 12–14 ft: 4.4% of the water
  • 14–16 ft: 2% of the water
  • 16–18 ft: 1.5% of the water
  • 18–20 ft: 2.4% of the water

Water and conditions

Our water temperature readings average 72°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. The coldest single reading we hold is 46°F and the warmest is 85°F; the warmest monthly average is 81°F. pH averages 8.6. These readings span 2018–2025.

2 ramps and launches on this water

On this water we hold 2 trailer ramps.

  • O'Dowd Lake Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
  • Thole Lake Public Water Access Site — 1 lane, restrooms. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.

Fee and opening hours are blank for all 2 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

With 94.1% of the water 14 feet or less, low level turns the flats into hazards. 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.