South Shore


South Shore | The FishFishing Calendar | Map


The South Shore of Lake of the Woods is open water fishing.  It is an awesome area, but the winds can definitely blow here and the waves can making fishing difficult.  Bigger boats in this area are the norm, however, when the waters are calm, smaller boats do fine here too.  This is a very popular walleye destination and maybe one of the best parts of the lake for catching good numbers of big fish.  Anglers also catch northern pike, perch and some smallmouth bass here too.



Primary Species of Fish


Walleye, Sauger & Northern Pike

Walleye, sauger and northern pike are definitely the primary species of fish along the south shore of Lake of the Woods.  The walleye fishing is unbelievable in this part of the lake and the pike fishing can be very good as well.  Some very big walleye and pike are caught here every year.


Secondary Species of Fish


Smallmouth Bass, Muskie, Perch & Crappie

You may find some of these species in this area, however, this part of Lake of the Woods is dominated by walleye, sauger and northern pike.


Fishing Tips


We have plenty of fishing tips in the following sections:

The Fish

Fishing Calendar

Map


Fishing the Creeks / River Mouths


The main river on the south shore is the Rainy River, but there are other areas on the south shore with some creek arms that feed into Lake of the Woods.  The mouths of these areas can hold some fish throughout the year, but the spring and fall tend to be better times of fish these areas.  The mouth of the Rainy River is where the fish have to go as they enter or leave the Rainy River.  Thousands of fish move through this area every spring and fall, so of course this would be a popular fishing spot.  The spring and fall have huge runs of walleye and anglers will be out in the open water targeting fish too.


Fishing the Offshore Structure


On this part of the lake, it’s mostly about offshore structure.  Whether you are going out just a few miles or closer to 20 miles, if you come to this area and want to get in on the awesome walleye fishing, you have to be willing to go where the fish are and they can move quite a bit out here.


Fishing the Shorelines


The spring and fall will have more fish closer to the shorelines than in the summer, so if you’re looking to experience some better fishing close to shore, these are the times of year to come.  For the most part though, you’re going to do much better heading offshore to target walleye, pike and perch on the offshore structure.


 Fishing Regulations


Lake of the Woods MN DNR