Fishing in Grand Marais, Minnesota

Grand Marais sits at the edge of the Boundary Waters and the Gunflint Trail corridor, which means anglers here have a legitimate range of options within a short drive or paddle — from roadside lake access to multi-day canoe trips deep into the BWCA. The lake fishing around the Gunflint Trail covers species like lake trout, walleye, northern pike, and smallmouth bass, with Gunflint Lake (at 1,530 ft elevation) and Seagull Lake (1,480 ft) being the two spots in this list with the most complete public access and species variety. For moving water, the Brule River at the Arrowhead Trail access runs brook trout, brown trout, and rainbow trout and is rated moderate difficulty at 1,350 ft elevation — a reasonable wade for someone with basic fly fishing experience. Many of the smaller lakes on this list, including Flour Lake, East Bearskin, and Elbow Lake on the Gunflint, sit inside or adjacent to the Superior National Forest and require attention to BWCA permit rules if you're crossing the wilderness boundary. The season here runs cold and long — ice-out can come late into May some years, and fall fishing on the deeper lakes often holds up well into October before freeze.