Bass Lake Fishing near Turtle Lake, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Wisconsin holds Bass Lake, in Polk County. Mixed forest runs right down to the water. At 14 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. The nearest place of any size is Turtle Lake, 4.3 miles away. Beyond it, Amery at 11 miles and Clear Lake at 12 miles. Also within reach: Grass Lake at 0.4 miles, Mud Lake roughly 0.4 miles, Little Horseshoe Lake at 0.6 miles, Smith Lake roughly 0.6 miles and Silver Lake at 1.2 miles. Two sets of local rules meet not far from this water.

• Where to Fish on Bass Lake

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Public occurrence data for Polk County names brown trout, rainbow trout and northern pike. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. On Bass Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 69°F; the cold one sits at 10°F. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid April. Average temperatures cross freezing around mid April in spring and again near late November in autumn. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. Time your trip to Bass Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Should this one be busy, Grass Lake is 0.4 miles off. Treat access at Bass Lake as something to verify.