← Minnesota fishing maps

Best cisco (lake herring) lakes in Minnesota

666 Minnesota waters list cisco (lake herring) (official records or labelled estimates), 501 mapped with survey or official-chart depth data. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality, leading with the waters in our reviewed search catalog — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. Pelagic coldwater herring — suspends over deep basins chasing plankton, spawns on late-fall shoals, and shines as a winter ice target.

1. Lake of the Woods — 36 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Sauger, Northern PikeWhy #1: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 9 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
2. Rainy Lake — 161 ft max · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, SaugerWhy #2: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · 5 public access sites
3. Leech Lake — 135 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #3: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 12 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
4. Mille Lacs Lake — 40 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #4: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 13 public access sites, 2 carry-in or shore-oriented
5. Lake Vermilion — 70 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #5: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 15 public access sites
6. Lac la Croix — 168 ft max · real survey depth contours · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Sauger, Northern PikeWhy #6: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
7. Lake Winnibigoshish — 70 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #7: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 8 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
8. Namakan Lake — 150 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, SaugerWhy #8: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
9. Lake Kabetogama — 75 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, SaugerWhy #9: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 4 public access sites
10. Namakan Lake — 150 ft max · real survey depth contours · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Sauger, Northern PikeWhy #10: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 2 public access sites
11. Cass Lake — 120 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #11: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 6 public access sites, 3 carry-in or shore-oriented
12. Birch — 30 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #12: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 5 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
13. Pokegama Lake — 110 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #13: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 8 public access sites
14. Burntside — 160 ft max · real survey depth contours · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike, CrappieWhy #14: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 7 public access sites, 2 carry-in or shore-oriented
15. Gull Lake — 80 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #15: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 3 public access sites
16. Otter Tail Lake — 120 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #16: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 6 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
17. Sand Point Lake — 180 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, SaugerWhy #17: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
18. Dead — 60 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #18: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 4 public access sites
19. Lake Minnewaska — 30 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #19: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 3 public access sites
20. Lake Osakis — 60 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #20: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 3 public access sites
21. Bowstring — 30 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike, CrappieWhy #21: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 3 public access sites
22. Trout — 90 ft max · real survey depth contours · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike, BluegillWhy #22: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
23. Pelican Lake (Otter Tail) — 100 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #23: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 5 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
24. Whitefish Lake (Whitefish Chain) — 130 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #24: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 2 public access sites, 1 carry-in or shore-oriented
25. North Long Lake — 90 ft max · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern PikeWhy #25: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 3 public access sites

…plus 641 more Minnesota waters holding cisco (lake herring).

Find the closest cisco (lake herring) waters to you →

When to fish cisco (lake herring) in Minnesota

• Spring 10–40 ft — Post-ice-out schools roam the upper column over deep water — follow the bait clouds on the graph, not the bank.
• Summer 40–80 ft — Locked below the thermocline, suspended over the deepest basins. Vertical presentations at the school's exact depth or nothing.
• Fall 5–25 ft — The late-fall spawn puts silver schools on shallow gravel shoals and windswept rock — the one time they're everyone's fish.
• Winter 20–60 ft — A premier ice species — suspended schools cruise the basin mid-column. Watch the flasher and chase the marks.

Also in Minnesota: best largemouth bass lakes · best smallmouth bass lakes · best walleye lakes · best white bass lakes · best sauger lakes · best northern pike lakes · best crappie lakes · best bluegill lakes · best channel catfish lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best muskellunge lakes · best yellow perch lakes · best flathead catfish lakes · best freshwater drum lakes · best common carp lakes · best longnose gar lakes · best lake trout lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best lake whitefish lakes · best burbot lakes · best rock bass lakes · best splake lakes · best pumpkinseed lakes · best brown bullhead lakes · best lake sturgeon lakes

Cisco (Lake Herring) elsewhere: Ontario · British Columbia · Québec · Michigan · Germany · New York · Saskatchewan · Alberta · Manitoba