Bowstead Lake Fishing in Houghton County, Michigan

• Overview

  The Houghton County entry here is Bowstead Lake, in Michigan. The surface lies 1,473 feet up. It covers about 5 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. It is a small entry by Houghton County standards. Iron River is the closest place, 25 miles off. After that come L'Anse at 26 miles and Stambaugh, Iron River at 26 miles. Being near a boundary, it pays to know which side you are fishing.

• Where to Fish on Bowstead Lake

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. 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. Species logged across Houghton County include rainbow smelt, bloater, cisco and yellow perch. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. Bowstead Lake fishes better once you know its edges.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 64°F; the cold one sits at 10°F. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. The lid usually goes in late April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. The lid tends to go about late April and return around late November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. The season on Bowstead Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Public mapping records no formal access here, so plan for a walk and soft ground. For walleye, a jig and minnow near the bottom is the standard; evenings beat middays. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. Should this one be busy, Toby Lake is 1.2 miles off. Nothing here settles the position at Bowstead Lake for certain.