Fishing Chain Lake in Oconto County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Chain Lake falls in Oconto County, part of Wisconsin. The bank gives way to mixed forest. It runs to roughly 77 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. There is roughly 1.9 miles of shoreline here, which is a short walk end to end. It ranks high for size among our Oconto County listings. Crandon sits 25 miles from here and is the nearest stop. Green Bay sits 60 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Chain Lake

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Species logged across Oconto County include brown trout, largemouth bass, bluegill, yellow perch and northern pike. The county list is broader than any single water. At Chain Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 12°F in January and 67°F in July. Winter shuts things down for a spell, then spring reopens them fast. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid April. Open water usually runs from mid April until about late November. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Chain Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No built facilities appear in mapping around this water. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. For a change of water, Little Archibald Lake is 0.6 miles distant. Confirm before you fish Chain Lake.