Lake Ella, Michigan: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Lake Ella sits within Presque Isle County in Michigan. Land around it is pine and birch. It runs to roughly 127 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The bank runs about 1.7 miles all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. It is among the larger waters listed here for Presque Isle County. Supplies mean a trip to Rogers City, 12 miles off. Alpena lies 29 miles off, Lewiston another 32 miles. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Lake Ella

  Our records hold no depth for this water. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Records held for Presque Isle County cover rainbow smelt, alewife and bloater. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. On Lake Ella the first feature you find is usually worth a session.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 67°F, while January sits near 18°F. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. The lid usually goes in mid April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. The lid tends to go about mid April and return around early December. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. The season on Lake Ella rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. Failing this one, try Lake May, 1.1 miles away. None of that is settled for Lake Ella in what we hold.