Cranberry Lake, Michigan: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Chippewa County, Michigan, is where Cranberry Lake sits. What surrounds it is lake country bush. Surface area is around 85 acres, which gives you real water without needing a boat. There is roughly 1.7 miles of shoreline here, which is a short walk end to end. It is low-lying compared with other Michigan water we list. Thessalon lies 28 miles from the water. For a city, Greater Sudbury is 149 miles off. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Cranberry Lake

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Across Chippewa County, recorded fish include rainbow smelt, bloater, lake whitefish and alewife. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. Fish Cranberry Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 17°F in January and 66°F in July. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about mid April. The season between ice runs from about mid April to early December. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. That shapes the year on Cranberry Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. The slipway at Cranberry Flooding Boat Launch is half a mile away. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Bear Lake, 1.1 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. For Cranberry Lake in particular, ask before you travel.