Pelican Lake fishing: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye

Target species: Northern Pike, Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Smallmouth Bass, Black Bullhead, White Sucker, Black Crappie
Boat: 6 ramps and launches on file for this water.
Start here: Launch at Pelican Lake, Orr Public Water Access Site, 2 lanes.

The lake

Pelican Lake covers 11,466 acres in Minnesota, across St. Louis County. It is a lake: 92.8% of it is 14 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is at least 35 feet (10.7 m). Our records hold 11 species for this water.

Pelican Lake FIshing Pier - Orr, Minnesota (36912516183).jpg
Tony Webster from Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States · CC BY-SA 2.0

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.
  • Black Bullhead — Feeding water: 70–80°F.
  • White Sucker — Feeding water: 50–70°F.
  • Black Crappie — Feeding water: 65–75°F.

Also recorded here: Bluegill, Rock Bass, Yellow Perch, Pumpkinseed.

Gfp-minnesota-voyaguers-national-park-shoreline-of-pelican-lake.jpg
Yinan Chen · Public Domain

Depth and bottom

Deepest measured point: at least 35 ft (10.7 m). That is the deepest contour line: the bottom goes deeper. 92.8% of the water is 14 feet or shallower. We hold 170 depth contour lines for this water.

Gfp-minnesota-voyaguers-national-park-pelican-lake-view.jpg
Yinan Chen · Public Domain
  • 0–2 ft: 14.5% of the water
  • 2–4 ft: 8.8% of the water
  • 4–6 ft: 13.2% of the water
  • 6–8 ft: 17% of the water
  • 8–10 ft: 19.4% of the water
  • 10–12 ft: 16.2% of the water
  • 12–14 ft: 3.7% of the water
  • 14–16 ft: 2.5% of the water
  • 16–18 ft: 1.5% of the water
  • 18–20 ft: 1.2% of the water
  • 20–22 ft: 0.6% of the water
  • 22–24 ft: 0.5% of the water
  • 24–26 ft: 0.3% of the water
  • 26–28 ft: 0.2% of the water
  • 28–30 ft: 0.2% of the water
  • 30–32 ft: 0.2% of the water
  • 32–34 ft: 0.2% of the water
  • 34–35 ft: 0.2% of the water

Water and conditions

Our water temperature readings average 64°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. The coldest single reading we hold is 34°F and the warmest is 79°F; the warmest monthly average is 69°F. These readings span 2016–2025.

6 ramps and launches on this water

On this water we hold 6 trailer ramps.

  • Pelican Lake, Orr Public Water Access Site — 2 lanes.
  • Pelican Lake (NE) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. St. Louis County.
  • Pelican Lake (W) Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.
  • Pelican Lake, Co Rd 515 Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. St. Louis County.
  • Pelican Lake, Co Rd 516 Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. St. Louis County.
  • Pelican Lake, Saunders Bay Public Water Access Site — 1 lane. DNR Division of Parks and Trails.

Fee and opening hours are blank for all 6 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: 11,466 acres of open water build a short steep chop, and there is no shelter in the middle. With 92.8% of the water 14 feet or less, low level turns the flats into hazards.

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.