Lake of the Woods

Lake of the Woods is about 950,400 acres, split between Minnesota, Ontario and Manitoba. Minnesota's share is 307,010 acres. It's one of the state's ten large walleye lakes, and the DNR sets survey nets on it every September.

On the American side you start from one of three places. The Rainy River at Baudette has the town and most of the charter boats. The south shore faces Big Traverse Bay, where the resorts plow ice roads up to 20 miles out every winter. The Northwest Angle, a piece of Minnesota stranded at the top of the lake, you reach by boat or by driving through Canada.

We built this guide from what the businesses on the lake publish. In late October 2026 we went through the rate pages of 55 resorts, guides and ice-house outfitters for the Register's Lake of the Woods page, and every price here comes from one of them. Most don't put a year on their rates, so check when you book.

The three shores

Baudette and the Rainy River account for 23 of the 55 places in the Register. The resorts along the river and at its mouth run big charter boats out onto the lake, and in spring they fish the river itself for walleye and sturgeon. Baudette has the motels and the stores. Timber Mill Park, the city campground, charges $25 to $40 a night (2026).

The river keeps its own spring rules. From March 1 to April 14, every walleye and sauger caught in the Rainy River or Four Mile Bay goes back. The spawners have been getting bigger, too. In 1982 the most common walleye in the run at Long Sault Rapids was about 17 inches long. The DNR now puts it at about 26.

The south shore means Arnesen's at Rocky Point, Zippel Bay, Long Point and the sleeper outfits around Williams, all facing Big Traverse Bay. The bay is roughly 25 miles across and mostly less than 25 feet deep. Most of the winter trade runs from here: seven of the nine fish-house outfitters in the Register work this shore.

The Northwest Angle is the part of Minnesota that Canada cuts off at the top of the lake. About half its resorts are on the mainland at Angle Inlet, and the rest are out on Oak and Flag islands, a boat ride from Young's Bay. Driving there takes you through Canada, including about 30 miles of gravel at the north end. You check in with Canadian border services on the way in and with US Customs at Jim's Corner on the way back. Some Angle resorts will pick you up by boat from the south shore instead, which skips the border entirely.

What a day on the water costs

Guides here sell three different days: a guide boat for three or four anglers, a 27- to 30-foot charter launch for up to six, and a single seat on somebody else's charter. They aren't the same trip, so compare each price with others of its kind.

Live from the Register. "Typical" is the median of published full-day rates.

A guide boat costs $500 to $900 for a full day, with $750 about the middle. A six-person launch costs $850 to $1,250. Split six ways that's roughly $140 to $210 each, so the launches make the most sense for a full group. If there are only one or two of you, buy a seat instead: Adrian's, Zippel Bay and Wigwam sell full-day seats on their charters for $175 to $195.

Check what the price includes before you compare. Briggs Guide Service includes bait, tackle and rods. Sunset Lodge on Oak Island adds $16 a person for shore lunch, and $400 if you want a follow boat. Springsteel's launch has a four-hour minimum, and Arnesen's warns that a fuel surcharge may apply.

Where to sleep

Resorts on this lake charge in one of two ways. Some price by the person per night and others by the cabin. In the rates below, a couple pays less at the per-person places, and a group that fills a cabin starts to come out ahead at the per-cabin ones.

A sample. The Lake of the Woods page lists every resort with its rate and the year it applies to.

Twelve places will feed you if you want them to, with meals as an option. The cheapest nights are at the campgrounds: Lake of the Woods Campground & Marina charges $40 to $50, and Timber Mill Park in Baudette $25 to $40.

The hard-water season

A lot of people fish this lake through the ice. Anglers logged about 2 million hours on the Minnesota side in the winter of 2024-25. Fishing starts once the ice is 8 to 12 inches thick, usually in early December. People walk and ride ATVs out first. Track vehicles follow, and then the resorts open their plowed, marked roads.

A day house is a heated fish house you rent by the person, and the price usually covers the ride out and the bait. Most outfitters charge $85 to $110 a day. Zippel Bay is $85 midweek, Springsteel $95 and Young's Bay $110. Arnesen's $104 covers the house, transport and chubs (2027 rates). Ballard's costs more at $175, but that adds tackle, fish processing and a guided ride out.

Sleepers are fish houses you stay in overnight, rented by the person or by the house. Twin Island Sleepers charges $335 a person for two nights, and Long Point $325. Arnesen's packages start at $274 a person for two nights and two days of fishing. LOTW Sleepers rents the whole house, from $450 a night for up to three people midweek to $1,000 for five on a weekend night (2026-27).

How you get out there depends on who you book. Ballard's, Sunset Lodge and Gibbins drive you out in Bombardier track vehicles. Trophies Only uses a SHERP, an amphibious vehicle, on its guided trips. At Zippel Bay you can take your own car out on the plowed roads.

You can fish two lines on the ice, against one in open water. Every fish house has to be off the lake by midnight on March 31.

When to come

• Mid-May to early June, and again in September and October, are the best months for walleye in open water. The charter boats run from the opener through October.
• Muskie season runs June 20 to November 30. You can keep one fish, and it has to be at least 50 inches.
• Ice fishing runs from mid-December into March, in day houses and sleepers.
• From March 1 to April 14 the walleye run up the Rainy River, and it's catch-and-release only.
• You can keep a sturgeon from April 24 to May 7 and from July 1 to September 30, one fish a year.

Rules to know before you keep a fish

• Walleye and sauger: 6 combined, and no more than 4 of them walleye. Walleye from 19.5 through 28 inches go straight back, but you can keep one over 28 inches.
• Northern pike: open all year, 3 in possession. Release every pike from 30 through 40 inches. You can keep one over 40.
• Lake sturgeon: one a calendar year, 45 to 50 inches or over 75, and only in the keep seasons. Sturgeon fishing is closed entirely from May 16 to June 30.
• On the ice, keep walleye and pike whole and measurable unless you're cooking them, and hold on to the carcasses until the end of the day.

These come from the DNR's 2026 Minnesota Fishing Regulations for border waters, which run until February 28, 2027. The rules change every March. The full list is on the Lake of the Woods page.

The outfitter's list

• Passport or border-crossing documentOnly if you're driving to the Northwest Angle, since the road goes through Canada.
• Minnesota fishing licenseYou need one on the Minnesota side, summer and winter.
• The current DNR regulationsA new booklet comes out every March, and the slot limits can change with it.
• Your own bait, at some ice outfittersMost day-house rates include it. Long Point's don't.
• A generator, or the fee for oneArnesen's, Long Point and Springsteel charge $50 a day for one in a sleeper. At River Bend it's included.