Black Bear Lake in Polk County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Black Bear Lake sits within Polk County in Wisconsin. The country round it is pine and birch from end to end. This is a pocket water of some 15 acres, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. Cumberland lies 8.8 miles from the water. Turtle Lake is 14 miles away, with Frederic at 15 miles. Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Black Bear Lake

  Nothing in our records gives a depth for this one. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. County-wide records name brown trout, rainbow trout and northern pike. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. Black Bear Lake gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 69°F on average, January about 10°F. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around mid April. On the long-run averages the water opens up around mid April and starts locking again about late November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Plan around that when you fish Black Bear Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. Public mapping records no formal access here, so plan for a walk and soft ground. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. Failing this one, try Wintergreen Lake, 0.6 miles away. Check the current arrangement for Black Bear Lake.