Upper Bushman Lake in Oakland County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Michigan holds Upper Bushman Lake, in Oakland County. This is pine and birch ground. With some 31 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Roughly 1.2 miles of bank means you can walk to a fresh area when one goes quiet. The nearest place of any size is Clarkston, 4.2 miles away. Ortonville is 5.5 miles and Oxford 6.2 miles. Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Upper Bushman Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Open biodiversity records for Oakland County list bluegill, black crappie, largemouth bass and yellow perch. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. Take Upper Bushman Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 22°F in January to roughly 70°F in July. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. After early April the shallows warm and the fish move up. The water is typically free of ice between early April and mid December. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Plan any trip to Upper Bushman Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Public data has parking about half a mile from the shore. A pier half a mile from here gives a platform over deeper water. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. Whipple Lake sits 0.7 miles off and takes the overflow. Nothing here settles the position at Upper Bushman Lake for certain.