Looking Glass Lake in Allegan County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  In Michigan, Looking Glass Lake falls inside Allegan County. The surface lies 614 feet up. Surface area runs to about 19 acres — small enough to read in one session. With about 1.1 miles of edge, you can try several depths in one session. By elevation it sits in the lower part of our Michigan listings. Nearest place of any size is Fennville, 2.2 miles away. It is 32 miles to Grand Rapids, the nearest city. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Looking Glass Lake

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Open biodiversity records for Allegan County list alewife, rainbow smelt, yellow perch and bloater. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Looking Glass Lake fishes better once you know its edges.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 71°F for July and 23°F for January. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from late March. On the long-run averages the water opens up around late March and starts locking again about late December. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. That is the shape of the year on Looking Glass Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Nothing in the way of made access shows up nearby: no ramp, no car park, no path. For the carp, bait a margin spot and sit on it; corn and bread still work. Local rules can differ across the county line, so check where you stand. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. For a change of water, Perch Lake is 1.4 miles distant. Ask locally about Looking Glass Lake if anything is unclear.