Minnesota · Sherburne County

Orono Lake Fishing guide

Orono Lake is a 301-acre lake in Sherburne County, Minnesota, reaching 18 ft at its deepest point. Average water clarity runs about 3 ft. The Minnesota DNR has surveyed the lake 5 times, most recently in 2021, with walleye, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass and northern pike in the nets.

Open the live map → Survey data

Depth to 18 ft · top 4 summer marks

Surface301 ac

Max depth18 ft

Mean3.1 ft

Clarity3 ft

Littoral94%

Surveyed2021

How to fish Orono Lake through the year

Walleye

Spring: Walleye are shallow, on and just off the spawning flats and the first green weeds. In 3 ft of visibility, they sit shallower than you think.
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. With 94% of this lake 15 ft or shallower, the weed edge is the main event.
Fall: Walleye are packing onto the sharpest breaks and points as the water cools, in big schools with short windows. A 18-ft bowl cools fast, so the fall window comes early here.

Largemouth bass

Spring: Largemouth are moving up into the warming bays and flats, staging around wood, docks and new weeds to spawn. In 3 ft of visibility, they sit shallower than you think.
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. With 94% of this lake 15 ft or shallower, the weed edge is the main event.
Fall: Largemouth are chasing bait back onto the flats and into the remaining green weeds, feeding hard and shallow before the freeze. A 18-ft bowl cools fast, so the fall window comes early here.

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	Walleye	Largemouth bass	Smallmouth bass
2021	—	—	8"
2019	23"	20"	20"
2008	24"	—	18"

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:

Walleye · Live bait

Slip Bobber + Leech

jumbo or large leech

4–20 ftdead slow

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Walleye · Trolling

Snap Weights + Stickbaits

4–5" suspending or slow-floating stickbait

10–35 fttrolling

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Largemouth bass · Hardbaits

Topwater Popper

2.5–3" concave-face popper

0–8 ftdead slow

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Largemouth bass · Hardbaits

Hollow-Body Frog

3–3.5" hollow-body frog

0–6 ftslow

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Smallmouth bass · Soft plastics

Ned Rig

2.75" finesse stickbait or craw-style Ned bait

5–25 ftdead slowweedless

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Smallmouth bass · Soft plastics

Drop Shot (Finesse Plastic)

4" finesse worm or 3" minnow-profile plastic

8–40 ftdead slowweedless

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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	Black Crappie	50 adults
2025	Bluegill Sunfish	1,000 yearlings
2025	Yellow Perch	1,000 yearlings
2023	Black Crappie	200 yearlings
2023	Bluegill Sunfish	800 yearlings
2023	Largemouth Bass	200 yearlings
2023	Yellow Perch	800 yearlings
2022	Black Crappie	1,200 yearlings
2022	Bluegill Sunfish	1,500 yearlings
2022	Largemouth Bass	500 yearlings · 10 adults
2022	Walleye	281,000 fry · 6,120 fingerlings
2021	Black Crappie	200 adults

Stocking records before 2021 omitted.

MN DNR · in their words

From the 2021 survey

Orono Lake is a 281-acre reservoir formed by a dam on the Elk River in the City of Elk River in Sherburne County. Orono Lake has a maximum depth of 18 feet and there is a public access on the west side of the lake in a city park. The reservoir has had issues with sediment deposition from the Elk River over the years and was originally drawn down and dredged in 1999 to remove some of the sediment. Because of continual sedimentation over the past 20 years, a second drawdown and dredging was conducted during the fall 2020 and completed in the early spring of 2021. Due to the drawdown and dredging project a partial winterkill was experienced. This brief survey was intended to determine the extent of the winterkill and whether any species need to be restocked.

On May 3, 2021, the Sauk Rapids Fisheries Office conducted 1.7 hours of electrofishing throughout various portions of the reservoir including upstream and downstream of Hwy 10 sampling 11 species of fish. Sport fish sampled included Black Crappie, Bluegill, Northern Pike, Smallmouth Bass, and Yellow Perch, all in relatively low numbers.

Read the full DNR narrative

After the survey, the lake association paid for the restocking of several species including Black Crappie (200 adults), Bluegill (3,800 yearlings), Largemouth Bass (20 adults and 2,000 yearlings), Walleye (200 fingerlings), and Yellow Perch (300 adults). The DNR will also stock an additional 281,000 Walleye fry in the spring of 2022. Additional surveys in the future may be necessary to measure the recovery of the fishery, which will likely take a period of several years.

Other species sampled in low numbers include Bowfin, Common Carp, Pumpkinseed Sunfish, Shorthead and Silver Redhorse, and White Sucker.

Narrative text from the Minnesota DNR lake survey.

Recent reports

Orono Lake fishing reports

Recent reports on Orono 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

Sherburne County reports

Public water access

Getting on the water

Orono Lake Fishing Pier (fishing pier)

DNR bathymetry

Orono Lake depth map

Orono Lake depth contour map, Sherburne County, Minnesota — Depth contours to 18 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

East Twin Lake · 92 ac · 5.3 mi
Birch Lake · 160 ac · 5.5 mi
Big Lake · 254 ac · 7.5 mi
Mitchell Lake · 170 ac · 7.7 mi
Eagle Lake · 462 ac · 8.7 mi
Ann Lake · 183 ac · 8.7 mi
East Hunter Lake · 57 ac · 9.4 mi
West Hunter Lake · 61 ac · 9.5 mi

Quick answers

Frequently asked questions

How deep is Orono Lake?

Orono Lake reaches 18 ft at its deepest point with a mean depth of 3.1 ft; about 94% of the lake is littoral (15 ft or shallower).

How big is Orono Lake?

Orono Lake covers 301 acres with about 12.2 miles of shoreline.

How clear is the water in Orono Lake?

DNR Secchi readings on Orono Lake average 3 ft of visibility, on the stained end for a Minnesota lake.

What fish are in Orono Lake?

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

Is Orono Lake stocked?

Yes. The DNR stocked black crappie, bluegill sunfish and yellow perch in 2025; the stocking table on this page lists every year back to 2021.

Does Orono Lake have a public access?

Yes. Orono Lake has one public access site: Orono Lake Fishing Pier (fishing pier).

How big do walleye get in Orono Lake?

The biggest walleye measured in recent DNR surveys taped 23"; the size-history table on this page tracks the biggest fish in each survey back to 2008.

When was Orono Lake last surveyed?

The Minnesota DNR last surveyed Orono Lake in 2021, the most recent of 5 surveys on record.

Page updated October 28, 2026.

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

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