Cisco Lake in Gogebic County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Cisco Lake sits in Gogebic County, out in Michigan. The ground round it is pine and birch. At some 457 acres it is far too large to cover on foot in a day. Size puts it in the front rank of our Gogebic County list. Nearest place of any size is Eagle River, 24 miles away. Green Bay sits 137 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Cisco Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. County-wide records name bluegill, yellow perch, walleye and largemouth bass. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Read Cisco Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 65°F and January near 9°F. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from late April. Averages suggest open water from about late April through to roughly late November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Cisco Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. Cisco Lake Boat Launch is the mapped launch, some half a mile from here. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Guides Lake sits 0.7 miles off and takes the overflow. Rules at Cisco Lake are worth checking on the day.