Share your catch

Grindstone Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Minnesota's two-story secret: a 60-foot glacial bowl stocked with lake trout, browns and the clarity to sight-fish them all.

5/5
Excellent. Go now.Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor.
Water temp
~66 F est.
Air / High
70 / 71 F
Wind
NNE 9 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

5/5Excellent. Go now.Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor.

Grindstone Lake sits in the sweet spot of the season: active fish and workable weather. Today brings a mixed sky, wind NNE around 9 mph, falling pressure near 1012 hPa and a high of 71. Water sits around 66 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Smallmouth bassExcellent

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Northern pikeExcellent

Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Lake troutGood

Transition depths: work 40-80 ft structure edges with white tubes and flutter spoons. Early mornings can find fish surprisingly high over deep water chasing bait.

Yellow perchGood

Drifting flats and weed edges with small jigs tipped with bait.

Tomorrow: Warmer at 78 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp70 F
High / Low71 / 62 F
WindNNE 9-12 mph
Pressure1011.8 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain43% cloud, 27%
Sunrise / Sunset06:36 / 19:44
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Showers, 71/62 F, wind 11 mph, rain 27%

Fair or better. A 11 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on Grindstone Lake: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Lake trout illustration

Lake trout

Best: ice-out and fall turnover

The char of the deep: 40-year-old predators patrolling the cold basins of glacial lakes, from the Finger Lakes to the Rockies. Transition depths: work 40-80 ft structure edges with white tubes and flutter spoons. Early mornings can find fish surprisingly high over deep water chasing bait.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Northern pike illustration

Northern pike

Best: spring, early winter

The ambush predator of weedbeds and cabbage edges. Aggressive, big and always worth a wire leader. Weedline spinnerbaits, spoons and jerkbaits; bays with fresh green weed hold the active fish.

Yellow perch illustration

Yellow perch

Good most of the year

The great lakes and northern panfish staple. Schools tight to bottom; where you catch one there are fifty. Drifting flats and weed edges with small jigs tipped with bait.

When to come: the Grindstone Lake calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Lake trout
Smallmouth bass
Northern pike
Yellow perch
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Grindstone Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 86 F, wind to 14 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 82 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 80 F, wind to 8 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
Only used to send you this water's report each week. No spam, ever.

Before you go

License

Minnesota requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Minnesota license + trout stamp. Lake trout/brown seasons and gear rules lake-specific: check DNR signage.

Access

Public access (east shore), resort landings; winter per local ice guidance.

About this water

528 deep-glacial acres, Pine County, MN. The metro's closest lake-trout water.

Fishing Grindstone Lake: the full guide

The deep anomaly

Grindstone drops 60 feet clear in Pine County: a two-story rarity managed for lake trout and brown trout over its smallmouth-and-panfish base: the metro's closest legitimate laker water (90 minutes from the Cities) and among its clearest anything.

The cold-water program

DNR's lakers and browns ride the depths: jigged through winter ice (the lake's marquee season: white tubes over 40-55 feet), trolled at the thermocline through summer (leadcore and spoons at 30-50). The browns cruise shallower dawn windows: flat-lined sticks along the drop in May and October convert.

Clear-water margins

Smallmouth work the boulder edges (sight-fishing in the visibility: long casts mandatory), largemouth hold the modest cabbage, and the panfish rafts school deep and finicky: 6-pound-test water throughout. The clarity that draws divers (a local site) sets the fishing's terms.

Pine County practicalities

The public access serves modest traffic (the lake stays quiet by metro standards): special regulations protect the trout (check the sign: seasons and gear notes): and winter access follows the resorts' guidance: the deep bowl's ice needs respect at the edges. Hinckley's services sit ten minutes west.

Common questions

Does Grindstone really have lake trout?

Stocked and thriving in the 60-foot bowl: winter jigging is the classic program. It is the Twin Cities' shortest drive to legitimate lakers.

Why is Grindstone so clear?

Glacial depth and springs with minimal inflow: visibility runs diver-grade. Fish it like mountain water: light line, long casts, low light.

Is fishing good at Grindstone Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor.

Nearby waters

Leech Lake33 miMille Lacs Lake37 miSaint Croix River52 miNamekagon River68 miBois Brule River69 miGull Lake72 mi
Share your catch