Lake Gratiot Fishing Guide, Keweenaw County, Michigan

• Overview

  Lake Gratiot is one of the Keweenaw County waters in Michigan. The setting is rolling bush. Surface area runs to roughly 1,454 acres, so plan for one area rather than the whole. You are looking at roughly 6.5 miles of shoreline, with plenty of water between access points. Few waters listed in Keweenaw County are bigger. Nearest town is Laurium, 17 miles off. Further out sit Dollar Bay (24 miles) and Houghton (26 miles). The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Lake Gratiot

  Our records hold no depth for this water. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Across Keweenaw County, recorded fish include rainbow smelt, yellow perch and white sucker. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Work Lake Gratiot in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is 16°F to 64°F. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around late April. Going by climate averages, expect open water from about late April until roughly late November. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. Anyone fishing Lake Gratiot regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Gratiot Lake Boat Launch gives a made launch, half a mile off. Mapping shows a jetty some half a mile off. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. For a change of water, Beaver Pond is 3.7 miles distant. Confirm access to Lake Gratiot locally before you travel.