Want to Test Your Skills at a Twin Cities Trout Fishing Hot Spot?

If catching Rainbow Trout is on your list, then Cenaiko Lake in the Twin Cities Gateway is a great place to check out. This small man-made lake is located in Coon Rapids, Minnesota and is the perfect place for the whole family to fish and reap the rewards. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MNDNR) stocks this lake twice a year with nine to sixteen inch trout. In the Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park system, the lake is next to the Mississippi River Trail (MRT) for those who prefer to commute there by bike.

Each fall, after the summer trout season ends, the MNDNR stocks the lake with Rainbows. Then, again in the spring after ice has melted, they restock the lake again. Designated as a trout lake, you can also catch Small-Mouth Bass and Hybrid Sunfish here. However, note that fishing is only allowed during the trout season. Please see the Minnesota Fishing Regulations booklet for complete rules and guidelines.

Operated by Anoka County Parks, the Cenaiko Lake basin was formed from an old gravel pit where the deepest spot is 36 feet. A local fishing spot long before trout were introduced, shore fishing is accessible around the lake. There is a fee to enter the Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park system, if you arrive by car. For those who choose to use a bicycle or travel into the park by foot, then the fee is waived. Connecting to the MRT you will find a paved trail around the shoreline. Along the trail you will also find  several picnic shelters and a playground to make this fishing destination a family event.

Summer Twin Cities Trout Fishing Opportunities

From the middle of April through the end of September, the entire shoreline around the lake is open for fishing. There is no boat access, but a fishing pier is available for use. The favorite bait for casting is wooly buggers and pheasant tail nymphs. See a Video of some young fishermen catching their limit.

Winter Twin Cities Trout Fishing Opportunities

Winter lake trout fishing season is mid-January (or when the ice is safe), through the end of March. For more information, visit dnr.state.mn.us.

For more information call Anoka County Parks at 763-757-3920.

Other Twin City Metro Trout Fishing Destinations

Looking for more places for fly fishing in the metro area when Cenaiko Lake isn’t producing? Learn more about fly fishing locations in the Twin Cities metro area below.

There are a few trout fishing lakes and a stream that are located in the south and west metro area. These places provide great access to fly fishing. You can also try fishing beach areas on lakes (where permitted) at dusk and dawn when other lakes are heavily vegetated.

Christmas Lake

Near Excelsior, Christmas Lake is just across MN Highway 7 from Lake Minnetonka. Water quality allows for “two-story” fish management. If you venture into the deeper waters here, you will find trout and the Bass-Panfish-Northern Pike fish community spread throughout the rest of the lake. Because Christmas is not a Designated Trout Lake, anglers can fish non-trout species during their legal seasons. Please remember trout fishing during closed seasons is both illegal and poor sportsmanship. The lake lacks shore fishing qualities, however, there is a small public access. Unfortunately, adjacent street parking is unavailable.

Courthouse Lake

In Chaska, the Courthouse Lake fish population has changed significantly in recent years due to flooding. After the flood in 1993, the lake was designated as a trout lake and a total lake reclamation was preformed. Then, in 1995, Rainbow Trout were introduced to the lake along with Brook and Brown Trout being stocked there in following years.

Holland Lake

In Eagan, located in within Lebanon Hills Regional Park Reserve, is Holland Lake were surplus adult Brown and Rainbow Trout are stocked. The water quality in the lake is excellent and trout stocked in recent years have been well received by anglers. There is no boat access and winter kill has been an issue. Thanks to the Dakota County Parks an aeration device is being used to bring up the oxygen level in  the winter.

Eagle Creek

And in Savage, Eagle Creek is at the crossroads of busy Highways 13 and 101 in Scott County.  A self-sustaining but small population of Brown Trout in the stream there requires that you obey the Special Regulation — catch-and-release only policy.

Good luck!