Kelsey Lake in Presque Isle County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Kelsey Lake belongs to Presque Isle County, Michigan. The setting is rolling bush. With some 29 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Around 1.1 miles of margin, front to back. Rogers City sits 16 miles from here and is the nearest stop. After that come Lewiston at 28 miles and Indian River at 30 miles. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Kelsey Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. County-wide records name rainbow smelt, alewife and bloater. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. Kelsey Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 67°F on average, January about 18°F. Hard water is a season in its own right here. Expect a solid lid for months and a thaw around mid April. Average temperatures cross freezing around mid April in spring and again near early December in autumn. The middle of summer slows a little, with dawn and dusk carrying it. At Kelsey Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. No made access is recorded, so a short walk in is the likely arrangement. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Rainbow Lake, 0.7 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Signs at Kelsey Lake carry more weight than any list.