High Banks Lake in Chippewa County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  High Banks Lake sits in Chippewa County, out in Michigan. What surrounds it is pine and birch. The water measures roughly 14 acres, so nothing here is far from anything else. Sault Ste. Marie at 26 miles is the nearest place to stop. Greater Sudbury sits 185 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on High Banks Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Survey and observation records for Chippewa County include rainbow smelt, bloater, lake whitefish, alewife and lake trout. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Read High Banks Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 64°F on average, January about 14°F. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. Expect a solid lid for months and a thaw around late April. Climate figures give an open season running late April to early December. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. At High Banks Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. You will be walking about half a mile from the nearest car park. Facilities run to toilets 0.9 miles from the water. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Local rules can differ across the county line, so check where you stand. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Stump Lake, 0.4 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Ask locally about High Banks Lake if anything is unclear.