Fishing at Friedbauer Lake, Bayfield County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Friedbauer Lake lies in Bayfield County, in Wisconsin. It sits in pine and birch. Surface area runs to about 20 acres — small enough to read in one session. The town to know is Ashland, 24 miles out. Beyond it, Little Round Lake at 25 miles and Hayward at 26 miles. Within a short drive: Trapper Lake out at 0.6 miles, Lake Knotting roughly 0.9 miles, Lake Lizzie out at 1.3 miles, Holmes Lake roughly 1.4 miles and Cranberry Lake out at 1.4 miles. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Friedbauer Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Public occurrence data for Bayfield County names rainbow smelt, brown trout, yellow perch and rainbow trout. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. On Friedbauer Lake the first feature you find is usually worth a session.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from 9°F in January up to 66°F in July. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. The lid usually goes in mid April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Climate figures give an open season running mid April to late November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. At Friedbauer Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Should this one be busy, Trapper Lake is 0.6 miles off. None of that is settled for Friedbauer Lake in what we hold.