Word spreads fast whenever there is a hot bite going on somewhere in Minnesota.

I remember when Oak Lake near Watertown was "discovered" a few years back. There was no public access, so two anglers walked through an easement to a spot where it intersected the lake, drilled some holes and caught some 2-pound crappies. They let a few other people in on their secret, and then word spread like a wildfire. It was a chore taking that long walk with gear, so a landowner right off the main road started allowing access from his property for a small fee. On some weekends, there were hundreds of anglers dotting the ice. Nowadays, the bite on this shallow-basin lake has cooled considerably and no one fishes there.

Upper Red Lake became a hot-bite phenomenon when some anglers discovered the big crappies there. The feeding frenzy lasted a little longer than on Oak Lake, but the Upper Red winter crappie fishing is tapering off as the walleye fishing rebounds. Crappie anglers on Upper Red last season couldn't keep the walleyes off their hooks. It looks to be a red-hot walleye bite this year on Red.

When looking for a red-hot lake, don't expect a season-long situation. Lakes like Upper Red and Oak are exceptions to the rule, which is that a hot bite typically only lasts a short time. This is why smart anglers get there fast when they hear about a lake turning on.

I used to have a spot all to myself on Maxwell's Bay on Lake Minnetonka where the night crappie bite would always turn on about the second week in January and go for about three weeks. I took a few of my buddies out there on a few occasions, and even though they were sworn to secrecy, it wasn't long before the spot resembled Grand Central Station. I've tested the spot over the last few years, but it hasn't quite recovered yet. But nobody fishes up there anymore, so it will come back.

And no one can predict a hot bite somewhere. No one knows if the Winnibigoshish walleyes will go on a feeding binge in early February, but it has happened. No one knows if the big pike will feast in the shallow vegetation on Gull Lake, but if they do, that hot bite starts in late December and goes for about a week.

No, the hot bite cannot be predicted, so your next-best bet is to fish the lakes that have high potential, and if you're lucky, you might be on one of them when a hot bite occurs. Then you're not chasing the other anglers who are racing to the next hotspot. Instead, you're swearing all who fish with you to secrecy in hopes that everyone and their grandmother won't find out and start drilling holes.

The one thing you can count on is that a hot bite won't last for long on a particular body of water, but there are enough lakes in this state that there is always a hot bite going on somewhere. Keep your ears open, explore as much as possible, and be happy when you land on a lake where the bite is heating up. In the meantime, here are some lakes where the potential for starting a hot-bite rumor is high. Just get there before everyone else!

SOUTH TEN MILE LAKE
South Ten Mile Lake in Otter Tail County is not only a great first-ice hotspot for walleyes, but this body of water tends to maintain a steady bite right through to the end of the season.