Burden Lake in Ingham County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Out in Ingham County, Michigan, sits Burden Lake. This is rolling bush ground. The town to know is Stockbridge, 5.6 miles out. The nearest city of size is Lansing, 24 miles away. Near neighbours: Mud Lake about 1.5 miles, Lowe Lake a shade over 2.3 miles, Jones Lake about 3.8 miles, Lamoreaux Lake a shade over 4.3 miles and Wasson Lake about 4.5 miles. Being near a boundary, it pays to know which side you are fishing.

• Where to Fish on Burden Lake

  Open data we checked carries no depth for this water. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Public occurrence data for Ingham County names bluegill, rock bass and smallmouth bass. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Take Burden Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 70°F and January near 21°F on the long-run figures. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. Once it clears, about late March, the fishing comes on quickly. On the long-run averages the water opens up around late March and starts locking again about mid December. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. On Burden Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. Mapping shows an empty shoreline: no ramp, no jetty, no marked entry. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Mud Lake, 1.5 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Treat access at Burden Lake as something to verify.