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Read this post if you want good shore-fishing for bass and pike!


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So I'm sort of reluctant to advertise this lake, since it is a fairly small lake here in Eagan and there really aren't TOO many people that fish it despite the amazing access and different shore fishing spots. During peak season you'll be lucky to see a handful of people there.

BlackHawk Lake in Eagan MN is THE PLACE to go if you are an avid shore-fisherman going after Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike and HUGE bluegills. I have enclosed a picture of a bass I caught last year, and this is pretty much the average size of bass you see in this lake, maybe a tad smaller. I can even guide you to all of my favorite spots, although the pier itself is a great place too.

I've been fishing this lake for 3 years now, and I've never came up empty handed for what I'm fishing for. The Pike aren't exceptionally large but they are very aggressive and put up a good fight, the Bass are HUGE and will give you the fight of your life, and for the little kids there are really good sized bluegill.

full-39129-18902-bass2.jpg

Your best bet is to simply use a bobber and a couple split-shot sinkers for distance, and add a crawler/leech/minnow about a foot and a half below your bobber. Mepps lures also seem to work really well, and plastic worms work great around heavy vegetation.

The ONE bad thing about this lake, is on the super hot days of summer the vegetation is extremely thick, so you have to fish nimbly.. but even then the fishing is fantastic. I can answer any questions about this lake.

Also, here is a video of a largemouth I caught during my lunch break in late September at BlackHawk last year. I haven't been fishing for bass very long, so excuse the excitement in my voice! This bass was bigger than the one in the photo.

Also looking back I know that I did not properly handle this bass very well, but I honestly was not anticipating catching a whopper of a fish in the 30 minute time frame I had. I normally take much better care of the fish I release (I release all of my fish) and as an FYI this bass was returned to the water and did live shortly after my recording.

As reference I wear a size 11 1/2 shoe, so I am not sure exactly how big this fish was! I will be carrying with me an electronic scale and tape measure from now on.

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"for the little kids there are really good sized bluegills"

I take offense :P.. gills are one of my favorite species to chase.. nothing more exciting than watching a bull gill make a wake from 2-3' away for a popper

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I take offense :P.. gills are one of my favorite species to chase.. nothing more exciting than watching a bull gill make a wake from 2-3' away for a popper

I hear ya, I just know a lot of dad's who like to take their kids fishing as novices like to find a place that has a lot of the smaller panfish, and BlackHawk has plenty! Don't get me wrong, they are fun to catch and good eating if you can get a big enough slab.

And I should know, since in order to get to these big bass on crawler and leeches, I go through a lot of bluegill in the process!

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It will be interesting to hear how much the pressure increases at your spots now. Good post though! Keep us posted

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It will be interesting to hear how much the pressure increases at your spots now. Good post though! Keep us posted

Even though I enjoy the peace, I thought it was about time to share my opinion. I would just hope that the larger fish are released to keep the successful breeding this lake clearly has sustained going. I'll be sure to come back to this forum come opener and post more pictures!

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  • 1 year later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Was there thru ice recently. Hammered the gills. Caught well over 100 gills ended up keeping a nice mess of 8-10 inches. I was only guy out. And few holes around the lake so not many ice fisherman's there.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • mulefarm
      With the early ice out, how is the curlyleaf pondweed doing?
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
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    • Rick G
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    • monstermoose78
    • monstermoose78
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    • monstermoose78
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    • monstermoose78
      Well yesterday I got a little excited and let a turkey get to close and I hit the blind!!
    • smurfy
      good......you?? living the dream..in my basement playing internet thug right now!!!!!! 🤣 working on getting the boat ready.......bought a new cheatmaster locator for the boat so working on that.   waiting for warmer weather to start my garden!!!
    • monstermoose78
      How is everyone doing? Holy moly it’s chilly this morning I stayed in bed and will hunt later today when it warms up.
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