Cornell Lake Fishing in Schoolcraft County, Michigan

• Overview

  Set in Schoolcraft County, Michigan, this is Cornell Lake. The bank is 666 feet above sea level. The water covers some 27 acres, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. Ground here is low by Michigan standards. Newberry lies 21 miles from the water. The big place round here is Green Bay, 155 miles distant. Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Cornell Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. County-wide records name rainbow smelt, alewife, bloater and yellow perch. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. The shape of Cornell Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 65°F and January reads 15°F. Spring and autumn carry the fishing; summer and winter test it. After mid April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Averages place the thaw at mid April and the freeze at early December. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. At Cornell Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. 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. State or provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Crescent Lake, 0.8 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing on Cornell Lake should be assumed from this page alone.