Third Lake Fishing Guide, Montcalm County, Michigan

• Overview

  In Michigan, Third Lake belongs to Montcalm County. Lake country bush runs right down to the water. At 19 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. The nearest town is Edmore, 5 miles away. The nearest city of size is Grand Rapids, 42 miles away. The boundary is close enough to be worth checking before you fish.

• Where to Fish on Third Lake

  Open data we checked carries no depth for this water. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Reported across Montcalm County: bluegill, largemouth bass and white sucker. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. At Third Lake the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from 20°F in January up to 69°F in July. Spring and autumn carry the fishing; summer and winter test it. Ice is part of the season here, ending near early April. Going by climate averages, expect open water from about early April until roughly mid December. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. Anyone fishing Third Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. Launching is possible: a slipway lies half a mile off. Parking is not close: half a mile from the bank, and no nearer option is mapped. You can camp about half a mile away, going by the mapping. There are toilets 0.9 miles off. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Should this one be busy, Second Lake is 0.2 miles off. None of that is settled for Third Lake in what we hold.