Stickley Lake in Gogebic County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  In Michigan, Stickley Lake falls inside Gogebic County. Around the bank it is rolling bush. At roughly 11 acres, the whole thing is within casting reach of a single walk. By elevation it is in the upper part of our Michigan listings. Eagle River is the closest place, 28 miles off. The nearest city of size is Green Bay, 140 miles away. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Stickley Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Public occurrence data for Gogebic County names bluegill, yellow perch and walleye. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Read Stickley Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from 9°F in January up to 65°F in July. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Ice is part of the season here, ending near late April. Averages place the thaw at late April and the freeze at late November. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. It holds true on Stickley Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Failing this one, try Hartley Lake, 0.9 miles away. For Stickley Lake in particular, ask before you travel.