Petts Lake Fishing Guide, Genesee County, Michigan

• Overview

  Petts Lake is a Genesee County water, Michigan side. Around the bank it is lake country bush. At 14 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. Lake Fenton is the closest town at 1.6 miles. Ann Arbor is the closest city, 38 miles away. Neighbouring water: Crooked Lake (0.6 miles), 0.6 miles away is Nichols Lake, McCully Lake (0.9 miles), 1.1 miles away is Cady Lake and Lake Fenton (1.4 miles). This one sits near enough to a boundary to be worth checking.

• Where to Fish on Petts Lake

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Records held for Genesee County cover bluegill, largemouth bass, pink salmon and black crappie. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. On Petts Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 70°F for July and 22°F for January. A solid cap is the normal state through winter. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about early April. Averages place the thaw at early April and the freeze at mid December. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. The season on Petts Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. The nearest marina is SkipperBud's, some half a mile out. There is recorded parking some half a mile off. There is a jetty half a mile off, worth knowing on a busy day. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. The nearest alternative is Crooked Lake, 0.6 miles out. Where Petts Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.