Berch Lake Fishing Guide, Marquette County, Michigan

• Overview

  Berch Lake is one of the Marquette County waters in Michigan. It sits at 1,578 feet above sea level. Surface area runs to about 23 acres — small enough to read in one session. Compared with other Michigan water on our list, it sits high. You are 20 miles from West Ishpeming. Crystal Falls lies 21 miles off, Ishpeming another 21 miles. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Berch Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Marquette County records list white sucker, yellow perch, rainbow smelt, smallmouth bass and northern pike among the fish reported. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. Read Berch Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 11°F in January to roughly 64°F in July. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. The lid arrives early and lasts until roughly late April. Break-up sits around late April on average, with the water closing again about late November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Plan around that when you fish Berch Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. No slipway, car park or made path shows up nearby in mapping, so treat access as rough. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Springhole Lake sits 1.3 miles off and takes the overflow. Check the position on Berch Lake before loading the car.