Fishing at Crystal Lake, Vilas County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Crystal Lake sits in Vilas County, out in Wisconsin. The ground around here is lake country bush. It measures about 93 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. The full circuit measures close to 1.3 miles on foot. By elevation it is in the upper part of our Wisconsin listings. The closest town, Lac du Flambeau, is 14 miles away. Green Bay sits 129 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Crystal Lake

  Depth figures are not published for this one. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Open biodiversity records for Vilas County list bluegill, yellow perch, walleye and largemouth bass. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. At Crystal Lake the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate records put July near 66°F and January near 9°F. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. The lid usually goes in late April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. On the long-run averages the water opens up around late April and starts locking again about late November. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. Crystal Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. A slipway is marked about half a mile from here. You can leave the car about half a mile from the water. There is a campsite half a mile from the water. A toilet block sits half a mile away. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. For a change of water, Big Muskellunge Lake is 1.1 miles distant. Check the position on Crystal Lake before loading the car.