Lake Orion Fishing near Lake Orion, Michigan

• Overview

  Oakland County in Michigan is where Lake Orion sits. It lies 981 feet above sea level. Roughly 493 acres of surface: treat each bay as a water in its own right. With 8.1 miles or so of shoreline, boat anglers cover ground the bank cannot. It is among the larger waters listed here for Oakland County. Lake Orion lies 1.1 miles from the water. Further out sit Oxford (3.4 miles) and Auburn Hills (6.3 miles). It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Lake Orion

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. County-wide records name bluegill, black crappie and largemouth bass. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. The near bank of Lake Orion is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 70°F, with January the cold end at about 22°F. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. After early April the shallows warm and the fish move up. The lid tends to go about early April and return around mid December. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. Lake Orion runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. For boats, Orion Marine lies half a mile out. Public data has parking about half a mile from the shore. Public data records a pier about half a mile out. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Elkhorn Lake, 0.9 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. None of that is settled for Lake Orion in what we hold.