Minnesota · Crow Wing County

Bay Lake Fishing guide

Bay Lake is a 2,330-acre lake in Crow Wing County, Minnesota, reaching 74 ft at its deepest point. Average water clarity runs about 17.5 ft. The Minnesota DNR has surveyed the lake 10 times, most recently in 2021, with walleye, largemouth bass, northern pike and bluegill in the nets.

Open the live map → Survey data

Depth to 74 ft · top 5 summer marks

Surface2,330 ac

Max depth74 ft

Clarity17.5 ft

Littoral43%

Surveyed2021

How to fish Bay Lake through the year

Largemouth bass

Spring: Largemouth are moving up into the warming bays and flats, staging around wood, docks and new weeds to spawn. At 17.5 ft of clarity, fish them deeper and lighter than usual.
Early summer: Largemouth are on the shallow spawning flats and protected bays, where beds go on firm bottom next to isolated cover.
Summer: Largemouth are in and along the weeds: cabbage and milfoil edges, matted cover and shade. On a lake that drops to 74 ft, check the deep edge of that structure too.
Fall: Largemouth are chasing bait back onto the flats and into the remaining green weeds, feeding hard and shallow before the freeze.

Walleye

Spring: Walleye are shallow, on and just off the spawning flats and the first green weeds. At 17.5 ft of clarity, fish them deeper and lighter than usual.
Early summer: Walleye are setting up on the outside weed edge, points and shallow structure.
Summer: Walleye are working the weed edge, points and any wind-blown structure. On a lake that drops to 74 ft, check the deep edge of that structure too.
Fall: Walleye are packing onto the sharpest breaks and points as the water cools, in big schools with short windows.

Season patterns for each species. Open the live map for today's wind, light and water temp.

Size history

Biggest fish by survey year

Survey year	Largemouth bass	Walleye	Northern pike
2021	17"	25"	35"
2014	18"	26"	34"
2011	15"	27"	35"
2008	17"	26"	31"
2002	20"	26"	38"
1997	15"	25"	31"

Longest fish measured by DNR survey crews in each year's nets. Survey gear samples the population, so the lake usually holds larger fish than any survey measured.

Suggested tackle

What to bring

Top presentations for this lake's structure and clarity:

Largemouth bass · Soft plastics

Texas-Rigged Worm

7" ribbon-tail or straight-tail plastic worm

1–25 ftdead slow

Shop plastic worms →

Largemouth bass · Soft plastics

Free Rig

Creature bait or magnum finesse worm

8–30 ftdead slowweedless

Shop creature baits →

Walleye · Live bait

Live-Bait (Lindy) Rig + Leech/Crawler

jumbo leech or half a nightcrawler

8–35 ftslow

Shop octopus hooks →

Walleye · Trolling

Leadcore Line + Crankbaits

4–5" mid-diving crankbait behind a long leadcore run

15–45 fttrolling

Shop deep-diving crankbaits →

Northern pike · Soft plastics

Paddletail Swimbait on Jighead

4–5" paddletail swimbait on a ball-head swimbait jighead

3–25 ftmoderate

Shop paddletail swimbaits →

Northern pike · Muskie & pike

Soft Rubber (Bull Dawg / Medusa)

10" soft rubber body bait

3–25 ftslow

Shop musky rubber →

Full setups, including hooks, weights and line, are on the live map. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

DNR stocking records

Stocking history

Year	Species	Stocked
2025	Walleye	1,000,000 fry
2024	Walleye	1,000,000 fry · 16,000 fingerlings
2023	Walleye	1,000,000 fry
2022	Walleye	1,000,000 fry
2021	Walleye	1,000,000 fry
2019	Walleye	1,000,000 fry
2018	Walleye	1,000,000 fry
2017	Walleye	1,000,000 fry
2016	Walleye	1,000,000 fry

MN DNR · in their words

From the 2021 survey

Bay Lake is a popular 2,392 acre lake located five miles south of Deerwood in Crow Wing County. Development is heavy on its 24.3 miles of shoreline. Maximum depth is 74 feet, with 42% of the lake 15 feet deep or less. The lone public access located on the west shore of the northwest bay can get very crowded at times. Bay Lake has substantial recreational boating activity, especially on weekends and holidays. Three islands are present. Church Island is protected from future development through a conservation easement AMA (aquatic management area).

Walleye are currently stocked annually as fry. A variety of Walleye stocking strategies have been tried in Bay Lake since 1967, including fry and various rates of walleye fingerlings. However, none of these have been successful in creating more than a low-level walleye population. The 2021 Walleye catch of 1.1/gill net remains below average for this type of lake but is typical of past catches on Bay Lake. The average size was quite nice at 21.1". Walleye numbers seem to be kept low by the high abundance of northern pike, and the low number of yellow perch.

Read the full DNR narrative

The Northern Pike catch, although down from 19.6/gill net in the previous survey, was still high at 9.9/gill net. Efforts by the lake association and local anglers to encourage harvest of more abundant smaller Northern Pike coupled with the North Central zone regulation should help reduce overall pike numbers while improving size structure. Average size in 2021 was small at 19.2 inches and only 17% were above the 22-26" protected slot.

Largemouth Bass were sampled by night electrofishing at a rate of 64.1/hour, down from the 2014 rate of 100.3/hour. Average length was 12.7 inches, with 71% measuring 12 inches or larger.

Black Crappie numbers were average, with 47% measuring 8" or larger. Bluegill numbers, although average as well, were the lowest to date at 9.5/trap net. Average length was 6.0" and 42% of the fish were 7" or larger.

Bay Lake is designated as an infested water because of Eurasian watermilfoil and zebra mussels. Lake users are required to inspect and remove any aquatic plants and animals from their watercraft and trailers as well as remove the plug and drain all water from the watercraft, including bilges, livewells and baitwells.

Narrative text from the Minnesota DNR lake survey.

Recent reports

Bay Lake fishing reports

Recent reports on Bay Lake from guides, tournaments and regular anglers. Anything posted in the last two weeks also bumps the matching spots on the live map, so you'll see a "matches a recent report" tag on them.

Open the live map → Fished it lately? Write a report

Crow Wing County reports

Public water access

Getting on the water

Bay Lake (trailer launch)

DNR bathymetry

Bay Lake depth map

Bay Lake depth contour map, Crow Wing County, Minnesota — Depth contours to 74 ft from Minnesota DNR bathymetry, free to save or print. The live map adds ranked spots and conditions on the same contours.

Within 30 miles

Nearby lakes

Crooked Lake · 463 ac · 2.2 mi
Partridge Lake · 188 ac · 2.5 mi
Clearwater Lake · 906 ac · 2.7 mi
Hanks Lake · 165 ac · 2.9 mi
Turtle Lake · 108 ac · 3 mi
Shirt Lake · 231 ac · 3.5 mi
Portage Lake · 287 ac · 3.6 mi
Sunset Lake · 221 ac · 4.1 mi

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions

How deep is Bay Lake?

Bay Lake reaches 74 ft at its deepest point; about 43% of the lake is littoral (15 ft or shallower).

How big is Bay Lake?

Bay Lake covers 2,330 acres with about 24.1 miles of shoreline.

How clear is the water in Bay Lake?

DNR Secchi readings on Bay Lake average 17.5 ft of visibility, clear water for a Minnesota lake.

What fish are in Bay Lake?

Minnesota DNR surveys (most recently 2021) record walleye, largemouth bass, northern pike, bluegill, crappie, yellow perch, rock bass.

Is Bay Lake stocked?

Yes. The DNR stocked walleye in 2025; the stocking table on this page lists every year back to 2016.

Does Bay Lake have a public access?

Yes. Bay Lake has one public access site: Bay Lake (trailer launch).

How big do largemouth bass get in Bay Lake?

The biggest largemouth bass measured in recent DNR surveys taped 17"; the size-history table on this page tracks the biggest fish in each survey back to 1997.

When was Bay Lake last surveyed?

The Minnesota DNR last surveyed Bay Lake in 2021, the most recent of 10 surveys on record.

Page updated September 22, 2026.

The live map adds today's conditions and ranked spots for Bay Lake, plus a trip plan you can share:

Open Bay Lake on the live map → Fished it lately? Write a report