Otter Tail Lake

Air

39°F

Wind

6 mph E

Sky

Partly Sunny

Pressure

30.32 inHgSteady (+0.4 hPa in 3 h)

National Weather Service hourly forecast; pressure from station KADC at 6:55 AM CT.

Otter Tail Lake covers 14,079 acres and is 120 ft at its deepest. These are the sport fish DNR surveys found here, and what each typically does in October in Minnesota lakes.

• WalleyeFall walleye feed heavily on rocky points and breaklines; dusk and after dark are often best.
• Northern pikeFall pike feed heavily along the last green weeds and drop-offs.
• Largemouth bassBass gather near the remaining green weeds and drop-offs and feed before winter.
• Smallmouth bassFall smallmouth school on deep rocky structure and feed before moving to wintering areas. From mid-September through February, smallmouth are catch-and-release only in most of the state (outside the Northeast Zone).
• CrappieFall crappies school tightly in deeper basins and feed actively.
• BluegillFall bluegill move toward deeper weed edges and feed actively.
• Yellow perchFall perch school on deep flats and feed heavily.

Season notes: Minnesota statewide inland seasons from the DNR's 2026–27 fishing regulations. Check current regulations.

Species found in Minnesota DNR fish surveys of Otter Tail Lake in the last 10 years or its latest survey (September 4, 2024).

• WalleyeSpawns over gravel and rock in the shallows soon after ice-out, peaking in 42–50°F water; in summer it holds deeper and feeds in the shallows at dawn and dusk.
• Northern pikeSpawns in flooded, weedy shallows right after ice-out and keeps feeding in cold water, so it bites from spring through ice season.
• Largemouth bassNests in shallow, firm-bottomed bays in late spring and spends summer in and along the weedbeds.
• Smallmouth bassNests on gravel and rock in late spring and stays around rocky points, reefs and current through summer.
• Black crappieSpawns in May and June in shallow water in the mid-60s °F; schools roam open water and feed most at night, dawn and dusk.
• BluegillNests in colonies in firm-bottomed shallows from late May through much of summer, in 67–80°F water; bigger fish feed in open water.
• PumpkinseedNests in colonies from May well into summer, often beside bluegill, and feeds heavily on snails.
• Yellow perchSpawns in early spring, draping egg ribbons over weeds and brush, and bites eagerly on worms all year, including through the ice.
• Rock bassNests over gravel near rocks and logs in late spring and stays close to rocky cover all summer.
• Tullibee (cisco)A cold-water fish of deep, well-oxygenated lakes that spawns in the shallows in late fall.
• Lake sturgeonA long-lived fish that spawns in spring over rocky river rapids and feeds along the bottom.

Also found

• Black bullhead
• Brown bullhead
• Hybrid sunfish
• Shorthead redhorse
• White sucker
• Yellow bullhead