Fishing Chippewa Lake in Bayfield County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Set in Bayfield County, Chippewa Lake is a Wisconsin water. The bank gives way to rolling bush. This is sizeable water at about 282 acres, and a boat opens up most of it. Shoreline comes to about 3.0 miles, small enough to learn in a day. Few waters listed in Bayfield County are bigger. The nearest place of any size is Little Round Lake, 25 miles away. It is 134 miles to Saint Paul, the nearest city. Rules can differ a short way off, since the county line is near.

• Where to Fish on Chippewa Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Reported across Bayfield County: rainbow smelt, brown trout, yellow perch and rainbow trout. The county list is broader than any single water. Read Chippewa Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 66°F and January near 9°F on the long-run figures. Seasons are distinct, and each one fishes differently. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around mid April. Going by climate averages, expect open water from about mid April until roughly late November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. It sets the rhythm of the year at Chippewa Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. You can launch from a ramp around half a mile away. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. The nearest alternative is Dells Lake, 1.4 miles out. Nothing here settles the position at Chippewa Lake for certain.