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Lake Minnetonka Fishing Report

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

The Twin Cities' trophy maze: 14,000 acres of bays and channels where metro muskies, bragging-size bass and ice culture share the docks.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~66 F est.
Air / High
81 / 84 F
Wind
NNE 8 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.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Lake Minnetonka offers the kind of conditions this water was made for. Today brings clear skies, wind NNE around 8 mph, falling pressure near 1011 hPa and a high of 84. 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.

MuskellungeExcellent

Bucktails and rubber over cabbage and rock bars; moon majors matter here more than anywhere.

WalleyeExcellent

Jig and minnow on rock reefs and points; the evening bite on wind-blown shores is the one to plan around.

Yellow perchGood

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

Tomorrow: Similar at 87 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 temp81 F
High / Low84 / 69 F
WindNNE 8-11 mph
Pressure1010.8 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain12% cloud, 4%
Sunrise / Sunset06:40 / 19:46
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 · Overcast, 84/69 F, wind 12 mph, rain 4%

Fair or better. A 12 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

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

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.

Muskellunge illustration

Muskellunge

Best: Sep-Nov

The fish of ten thousand casts. Weed edges, rock bars and big-water structure. Bucktails and rubber over cabbage and rock bars; moon majors matter here more than anywhere.

Walleye illustration

Walleye

Best: May-Jun, Oct

The glass-eyed prize of northern lakes. Low light, wind-blown structure and live bait. Jig and minnow on rock reefs and points; the evening bite on wind-blown shores is the one to plan around.

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 Lake Minnetonka 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
Smallmouth bass
Muskellunge
Walleye
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 Lake Minnetonka today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Smallmouth bass led the card at excellent. High of 88 F, wind to 13 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 87 F, wind to 8 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 86 F, wind to 6 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. Muskie 54-inch minimum; bass and pike zone rules: check DNR metro regs.

Access

Grays Bay, Spring Park, North Arm, Cooks Bay public accesses; winter plowed roads vary by bay.

About this water

14,004 acres, Hennepin County, MN. The Twin Cities' many-bayed flagship.

Fishing Lake Minnetonka: the full guide

The metro giant

Minnetonka sprawls 14,000 acres of interconnected bays twenty minutes from Minneapolis: the Twin Cities' flagship fishery wearing a yacht-club reputation. Underneath: a muskie program with 50-inch credibility, largemouth densities that host major tournaments, and panfish-and-pike water that taught generations of metro anglers.

Bay-by-bay logic

The lake fishes as a federation: clearer lower-lake bays (Wayzata, Carsons) run weedline finesse and smallmouth rock; the upper lake's fertile bays (Halsted, Jennings) fish stained and shallow: frogs over slop, pike in the cabbage. Muskies patrol the main-lake points and bar edges everywhere: dusk trolling in June, big rubber over the bars come fall.

Bass factory credentials

Minnetonka's largemouth average embarrasses fancier waters: docks by the thousand, milfoil edges, and harvest habits that left the population thick. Skipping docks and punching milfoil produce all summer; the smallmouth on the lower-lake rock piles add the technical dessert. Metro pressure teaches the fish: fluorocarbon manners apply.

Four seasons on the bays

Ice caps the bays into a village network (crappie in the deep holes, pike on tip-ups over the flats): spring crappie stack the channels: summer runs the full program dawn-to-dusk around recreation traffic: fall clears the lake for the muskie-and-bass faithful. Public accesses ring the lake: Grays Bay, Spring Park, North Arm: the maze rewards a map and a plan.

Common questions

Does Lake Minnetonka really hold big muskies?

Fifties are caught most seasons: the metro's best trophy odds. June's dusk troll and October's big-rubber weeks over the bars are the windows.

How do I start on 14,000 unfamiliar acres?

Pick one bay per trip: weedlines in the upper lake, rock-and-dock in the lower. The lake fishes small once you treat each bay as its own water.

Is fishing good at Lake Minnetonka right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Lake Waconia10 miKinnickinnic River47 miSaint Croix River57 miLeech Lake58 miGreen Lake68 miLake Pepin77 mi
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