Welcome to our Ely, MN Fishing Home Page
Ely, Minnesota offers some of the finest outdoor adventures in the United States. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area provides some of the most spectacular fishing you’ll ever experience. The opportunities are endless in this region. The Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness is the largest wilderness preserve east of the Rocky Mountains. You don’t have to be an expert to enjoy these waters. There are many canoe outfitters that can help you with all of the details of planning a trip into the Boundary Waters. You will also find numerous resorts along the lakes in the Ely area.
Boundary Waters Canoe Area
Ely, Minnesota is located right at the edge of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area. There are plenty of lakes in Ely that allow boat and motors on them, but once you get into the Boundary Waters, motorized usage is very limited and only allowed on certain lakes.
Learn More About the Boundary Waters Canoe Area
Primary Species of Fish
Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike & Walleye
This area is known for its tremendous smallmouth bass, walleye and northern pike fisheries. Some lakes are better than others, but if you take this area as a whole, there are a lot of places where you can fish and do well for smallies, pike and walleye. Good numbers are possible and trophy fish too.
Secondary Species of Fish
Largemouth Bass, Perch, Crappie & Bluegill
There are panfish throughout the area lakes and many anglers target them. Whether it is numbers or quality-sized fish, you can find them here. You may have to do a little work to get into some of the backcountry lakes, but if you put in the work, you can catch some very nice-sized panfish up here. Largemouth bass are a secondary species of fish up here, but there are some good lakes to target them with some big bass too.
Ely, MN Fishing Tips
We have plenty of fishing tips in the following sections:
Ely, MN Fishing Reports
Ely, MN Fishing Regulations
Our area waters page will give you links to the specific lakes in the area so you can view their DNR pages directly.
