Big Trout Lake Fishing near K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base, Michigan

• Overview

  Big Trout Lake is a Marquette County water, Michigan side. Height above sea level is 1,070 feet. Roughly 27 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. K. I. Sawyer Air Force Base lies 1.4 miles from the water. Further out sit Gwinn (6.5 miles) and Harvey (10 miles). Within a short drive: Silver Lake just 0.5 miles, Sporley Lake (0.8 miles), Engman Lake just 0.9 miles, Wilson Lake (1.1 miles) and Martin Lake just 1.9 miles. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Big Trout Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Across Marquette County, recorded fish include white sucker, yellow perch, rainbow smelt, smallmouth bass and northern pike. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. Take Big Trout Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 15°F in January and 65°F in July. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Ice is part of the season here, ending near mid April. Averages suggest open water from about mid April through to roughly late November. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. Big Trout Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. There is a slipway at Big Trout Lake Boat Launch, roughly half a mile off. You can park half a mile away and walk in from there. 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. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Failing this one, try Silver Lake, 0.5 miles away. Rules at Big Trout Lake are worth checking on the day.