English Lake Fishing Guide, Ashland County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  English Lake is an Ashland County water, in Wisconsin. It sits at 1,385 feet above sea level. Roughly 229 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. There is roughly 4.4 miles of bank, more than one visit can cover properly. It is among the larger waters listed here for Ashland County. Ashland sits 20 miles from the bank. The big place round here is Saint Paul, 147 miles distant. No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on English Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Species logged across Ashland County include rainbow smelt, yellow perch, white sucker, johnny darter and brown trout. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. English Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 9°F in January and 66°F in July. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Count the season from break-up, usually mid April. Ice usually gives way near mid April, and forms again about late November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. That is the shape of the year on English Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. A slipway is marked about half a mile from here. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Should this one be busy, John Frank Lake is 1.6 miles off. What applies at English Lake may have changed since it was mapped.