A Year on Rush-Hen Lake: Seasons Between Cross and Whitefish
From ice-out to first ice, the seasons on Rush-Hen Lake, with the story behind its old Ojibwe name.
There is a rhythm to a lake year that you only learn by staying. The groan of ice in March. The first loon call. The long gold evenings of July. The morning in October when the water steams in the cold air. Rush-Hen Lake has all of it, set in a quieter corner of the chain.
A name with a picture in it
The DNR notes that the Ojibwe knew this lake as the "lake of the pine sticking out of the water." It is a lovely image, and easy to imagine on a still morning with a tall pine leaning over a bay.
Like the rest of the chain, Rush-Hen took its current shape after the Pine River Dam was completed at the outlet of Cross Lake in 1886. Raising the water joined these lakes through channels. Today Rush-Hen sits between Whitefish and Cross, reached by boat through those channels rather than from a launch on the lake.
Picturing your own year here? Visit the buyer's page, or if you own on Rush-Hen, ask for a private valuation.
Spring: ice-out
Ice-out comes on its own schedule, earlier some years and later in others, and the DNR keeps ice-out records for many Minnesota lakes. When the ice goes, the bays wake up first. Shallow, sheltered water warms quickly, and the plant beds that make Rush-Hen so rich begin to grow again. Docks and lifts go in, and boats start moving through the channels.
Summer: bays, lilies and deep water
Summer on Rush-Hen is about variety. The DNR's 2010 survey found 39 native plant species, with waterlilies and other floating-leaf plants covering about 35 acres of shallow water and a small stand of wild rice. Paddling those bays at dawn is one of the quiet pleasures of the lake.
Out in the middle, the water drops to 105 feet, cool and deep. Swimmers find the firmer sand and gravel along the eastern shore and around the islands. Anglers work the weed edges. Sunfish are popular, and the DNR's Whitefish Chain rules limit them to five a day.
Boats pass through on the way between Whitefish and Cross. A short ride takes you to Cross Lake and the town of Crosslake, or toward Lower Whitefish and the big water beyond.
Fall: color and stillness
After Labor Day the channels quiet down. The trees along the shore turn, the lily pads fade, and the lake goes still in a way that summer never quite allows. It is a good season for a slow boat ride, a walk along the shore and an evening fire. Docks and lifts come out as the nights grow cold.
Winter: ice season
Once the lake locks up, Rush-Hen becomes a winter landscape. Ice anglers set up over weed edges and bays. Always check local ice conditions, and stay well away from the channels, where moving water can keep ice thin.
Caring for the lake
Every season includes a little stewardship. In 2024, starry stonewort, an invasive algae, was confirmed at a public water access on the channel between Rush Lake and Whitefish Lake, and the Whitefish Area Property Owners Association has been working on the response. Cleaning boats and gear, and keeping native plants along the shore, help protect what makes this lake special.
Things to do nearby
- The town of Crosslake for dining, shopping and services.
- The Army Corps of Engineers' Cross Lake Recreation Area at the dam, with beaches, a campground and fishing piers on Cross Lake and the Pine River.
- The National Loon Center in Crosslake, which the center says is set to open in 2027.
- The rest of the chain by boat, from Daggett and Little Pine to the Whitefish lakes.
Questions
What does Rush-Hen's Ojibwe name mean?
According to the DNR, the Ojibwe knew it as the "lake of the pine sticking out of the water."
How do you get to Rush-Hen Lake by boat?
By channel. There is no public launch on Rush-Hen itself; boats come in from Cross Lake or Lower Whitefish.
Is there wild rice on Rush-Hen?
Yes. The DNR mapped about one acre of wild rice in its 2010 survey.
Keep exploring
Read living on Rush-Hen Lake, the fishing guide, the Rush-Hen Lake guide, or all lake guides.
If you would like to spend your seasons on Rush-Hen, I would be glad to help you find the right place, or help you sell when the time comes. I am David Olson, with a family cabin on the Whitefish Chain in Crosslake. Call or text 218.513.2677 or email david@whitefishpropertyfinder.com.
Sources: Minnesota DNR, Aquatic Vegetation of Rush-Hen Lake (2010); Minnesota DNR, Sensitive Lakeshore Survey, Whitefish Chain (2012); MNopedia, Mississippi River Reservoir Dam System; Recreation.gov, Cross Lake Recreation Area; National Loon Center; Whitefish Area Property Owners Association, starry stonewort; Minnesota DNR quality sunfish initiative.