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LakeQuality

Fishing Forecast · Minnesota · Updated August 2026

Mcdonough Lake

C

Mcdonough Lake earns a C for water quality. This forecast reads its measured clarity, depth, and trophic state — with each species' biology, the sun and moon, and today's conditions — to call when the fish move on Mcdonough Lake and how to catch them.

13 ft
max depth
4
fish species
4.5 ft
water clarity
Eutrophic
trophic state
Today · Sat Aug 8
★★★★★

The bite on Mcdonough Lake today. Sunrise 6:06 AM, sunset 8:29 PM.

Moon
Waning Crescent · 23%
Major windows
7:43 PM–9:43 PM · 8:15 AM–10:15 AM
Best day · next 2 weeks
Thu Aug 13
★★★★★

New Moon moon (0%). Fish the major windows at 12:45 AM and 1:10 PM.

Fishing Forecast for Mcdonough Lake

A multi-factor outlook built from Mcdonough Lake's measured water quality — clarity, trophic state, depth, and water-body type — combined with each species' biology, seasonal patterns, and today's live weather. It flags spawn timing, where the fish hold, and the techniques that fit this lake's water, not just the moon.

Bluegill

PanfishSummerSummer pattern
Very Good
~73°F est.

Mcdonough Lake runs 4.5 ft of clarity and grades C for water quality — a balanced clarity where both natural finesse and moderate reaction baits produce.

  • Because Mcdonough Lake averages 4.5 ft of visibility (moderately clear), a balanced clarity where both natural finesse and moderate reaction baits produce.
  • Its eutrophic nutrient level puts the summer weedline near 8–12 ft — that edge is the high-percentage zone to hold bluegill through the warm months.
  • With a max depth of 13 ft, Mcdonough Lake is a shallow lake that stays mixed and warm all summer — fish relate to weeds, wind, and cover rather than depth.
Techniques for moderate water
ice-jigs with live bait under a floatsmall spinners
Season-by-season on Mcdonough Lake
SeasonWhereStructureHow
Springshallow 1–6 ftspawning beds in warm bays, near coversmall jigs, live worm/waxworm under a float
Summerweed edges 5–15 ftdeeper weed edges by midsummer, docks, brushice-jigs tipped with plastics/live bait, small flies
Fallmid 8–18 ftdeeper weedlines and basin edgessmall jigs vertically, tiny spoons
Winter / Ice8–20 ftbasin holes and deep weed edgestungsten ice jigs with waxworms/plastics

Pumpkinseed Sunfish

PanfishSummerSummer pattern
Very Good
~73°F est.

Mcdonough Lake runs 4.5 ft of clarity and grades C for water quality — a balanced clarity where both natural finesse and moderate reaction baits produce.

  • Because Mcdonough Lake averages 4.5 ft of visibility (moderately clear), a balanced clarity where both natural finesse and moderate reaction baits produce.
  • Its eutrophic nutrient level puts the summer weedline near 8–12 ft — that edge is the high-percentage zone to hold pumpkinseed sunfish through the warm months.
  • With a max depth of 13 ft, Mcdonough Lake is a shallow lake that stays mixed and warm all summer — fish relate to weeds, wind, and cover rather than depth.
Techniques for moderate water
small jigs with live bait
Season-by-season on Mcdonough Lake
SeasonWhereStructureHow
Springshallow 1–5 ftwarm weedy bays, coversmall jigs, worm under a float
Summershallow-to-mid 3–12 ftweed beds, dockssmall jigs and flies
Fallmid 6–15 ftweed edgessmall jigs
Winter / Ice6–15 ftweed edges and holesice jigs with grubs

The outlook is a transparent heuristic weighting of established angling factors, this lake's measured water quality, and live conditions — not a validated catch predictor. Water temperature is estimated from season and latitude unless a recent USGS gauge reading is available. Planning a meal? Check fish-consumption advisories for Mcdonough Lake. Always follow current state regulations.

14-Day Fishing Calendar

Plan the next two weeks on Mcdonough Lake. Anglers target black bullhead, bluegill, green sunfish, pumpkinseed on Mcdonough Lake.

DateRatingMoonSunriseSunsetMajor PeriodsMinor Periods
Sat, Aug 8☆☆☆☆☆
Waning Crescent
23% lit
6:06 AM8:29 PM
7:43 PM – 9:43 PM
8:15 AM – 10:15 AM
12:19 AM – 1:19 AM
5:14 PM – 6:14 PM
Sun, Aug 9☆☆☆☆☆
Waning Crescent
14% lit
6:07 AM8:28 PM
8:47 PM – 10:47 PM
9:19 AM – 11:19 AM
1:20 AM – 2:20 AM
6:13 PM – 7:13 PM
Mon, Aug 10½☆☆☆☆
Waning Crescent
8% lit
6:09 AM8:26 PM
9:51 PM – 11:51 PM
10:23 AM – 12:23 PM
2:35 AM – 3:35 AM
Tue, Aug 11★½☆☆☆
Waning Crescent
3% lit
6:10 AM8:25 PM
10:53 PM – 12:53 AM
11:23 AM – 1:23 PM
6:58 PM – 7:58 PM
3:57 AM – 4:57 AM
Wed, Aug 12★★☆☆☆
New Moon
0% lit
6:11 AM8:23 PM
11:51 PM – 1:51 AM
12:18 PM – 2:18 PM
7:33 PM – 8:33 PM
5:20 AM – 6:20 AM
Thu, Aug 13★★½☆☆
New Moon
0% lit
6:12 AM8:22 PM
12:45 AM – 2:45 AM
1:10 PM – 3:10 PM
8:00 PM – 9:00 PM
6:41 AM – 7:41 AM
Fri, Aug 14★½☆☆☆
Waxing Crescent
2% lit
6:13 AM8:20 PM
1:34 AM – 3:34 AM
1:58 PM – 3:58 PM
8:23 PM – 9:23 PM
7:59 AM – 8:59 AM
Sat, Aug 15★☆☆☆☆
Waxing Crescent
6% lit
6:14 AM8:19 PM
2:21 AM – 4:21 AM
2:44 PM – 4:44 PM
8:43 PM – 9:43 PM
9:13 AM – 10:13 AM
Sun, Aug 16☆☆☆☆☆
Waxing Crescent
12% lit
6:16 AM8:17 PM
3:06 AM – 5:06 AM
3:29 PM – 5:29 PM
9:02 PM – 10:02 PM
10:25 AM – 11:25 AM
Mon, Aug 17★☆☆☆☆
Waxing Crescent
20% lit
6:17 AM8:15 PM
3:51 AM – 5:51 AM
4:14 PM – 6:14 PM
9:21 PM – 10:21 PM
11:35 AM – 12:35 PM
Tue, Aug 18★★☆☆☆
Waxing Crescent
29% lit
6:18 AM8:14 PM
4:37 AM – 6:37 AM
5:00 PM – 7:00 PM
9:42 PM – 10:42 PM
12:45 PM – 1:45 PM
Wed, Aug 19★★½☆☆
Waxing Crescent
39% lit
6:19 AM8:12 PM
5:23 AM – 7:23 AM
5:47 PM – 7:47 PM
10:07 PM – 11:07 PM
1:53 PM – 2:53 PM
Thu, Aug 20★½☆☆☆
First Quarter
50% lit
6:20 AM8:11 PM
6:12 AM – 8:12 AM
10:36 PM – 11:36 PM
2:57 PM – 3:57 PM
Fri, Aug 21☆☆☆☆☆
Waxing Gibbous
60% lit
6:21 AM8:09 PM
6:37 PM – 8:37 PM
7:02 AM – 9:02 AM
11:12 PM – 12:12 AM
3:56 PM – 4:56 PM

Server-rendered 14-day calendar starting 2026-08-08. Live in your browser shortly.

Methodology

How this forecast works

A plain solunar table only knows the moon. The LakeQuality Fishing Forecast starts there and adds what actually decides where and how fish bite on Mcdonough Lake — factors we measure rather than guess:

  • Water clarity — Mcdonough Lake's Secchi reading flips the playbook between clear-water finesse and stained-water reaction baits, and sets the low-light bite window.
  • Trophic state & depth — nutrient level and max depth set the summer weedline and whether the lake stratifies, which tells you how deep to fish.
  • Water-body type — natural lake vs. reservoir changes the structure that holds fish.
  • Species & season — each species' spawn-temperature window and seasonal movements, matched to the lake's estimated water temperature.
  • Sun & moon — the solunar major/minor periods and dawn/dusk twilight in the calendar below.

The species outlook is a transparent heuristic weighting of these established factors, and it now also factors in today's live conditions — wind, cloud cover, and the barometric (pressure) trend, recomputed for the current day. It's not a validated catch predictor, and water temperature is still an estimate from season and latitude unless a recent USGS gauge reading exists. It's the analysis a solunar table can't do, grounded in Mcdonough Lake's real, measured water quality.

How to read the calendar

Major periods (≈2 hours) are centered on lunar transit (when the moon is highest in the sky) and lunar opposition (when the moon is directly underfoot). These are typically the strongest feeding windows.

Minor periods (≈1 hour) are centered on moonrise and moonset. They're secondary windows that often produce well — especially when they coincide with sunrise or sunset.

Day rating combines moon phase (peak near new and full moons, when lunar gravity is strongest) with the overlap of major periods and the dawn/dusk twilight. A 4–5 star day stacks all three.

At Mcdonough Lake (lat 44.79°N), the longest day of the year is around June 21 with 15h 35m of daylight. The shortest is around December 21 with 8h 47m. Plan summer trips around the early-morning bite (around 5:30 AM) and the long evening window before sunset.

Frequently asked questions

What makes this better than a solunar fishing table for Mcdonough Lake?

A solunar table only uses the moon. The LakeQuality Fishing Forecast adds Mcdonough Lake's measured water quality — its moderate clarity, trophic state, depth, and water-body type — matched to each species' spawn window and seasonal movements. That measured data drives where the fish hold and which techniques fit this lake's water, then the solunar calendar below adds the sun/moon timing. It's a transparent, multi-factor outlook, not a validated catch guarantee.

What is the best time to fish Mcdonough Lake today?

Today's solunar calendar for Mcdonough Lake (lat 44.79, lon -93.13) shows sunrise at 6:06 AM and sunset at 8:29 PM. The strongest fishing windows are around major solunar periods at 7:43 PM–9:43 PM and 8:15 AM–10:15 AM, plus the 30-90 minutes around dawn and dusk.

What does the moon phase mean for fishing Mcdonough Lake?

Solunar theory holds that fish activity peaks during major periods (when the moon is overhead or directly underfoot) and minor periods (moonrise and moonset). Fish feeding tends to intensify during the days surrounding the new moon and full moon, when lunar gravity is strongest. Today's moon at Mcdonough Lake is Waning Crescent (23% illuminated).

When are the longest and shortest days at Mcdonough Lake?

At Mcdonough Lake's latitude (44.79°N), the longest day of the year is around June 21 with about 15h 35m of daylight. The shortest day is around December 21 with about 8h 47m of daylight. Sunrise and sunset shift by roughly 6 hours between solstices.

Are major or minor solunar periods more important?

Major periods (about 2 hours, centered on lunar transit and lunar opposition) are generally considered the strongest feeding windows. Minor periods (about 1 hour, centered on moonrise and moonset) are secondary but still productive — especially when they overlap with sunrise or sunset.

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The species outlook is a transparent, multi-factor heuristic built from Mcdonough Lake's measured water quality (clarity, trophic state, depth, water-body type) and established species biology, and it now also factors in today's live conditions — wind, cloud cover, and the barometric (pressure) trend, recomputed for the current day. It's not a validated catch predictor, and water temperature is still an estimate from season and latitude unless a recent USGS gauge reading is available. Solunar times use lat/lon and Meeus astronomical formulas, shown in Central Time. Always check local regulations and current conditions before fishing.

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.

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