Joy Lake in Marinette County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  The Marinette County entry here is Joy Lake, in Wisconsin. The water sits 879 feet up. Small at around 16 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. For supplies, Peshtigo is 26 miles out. Gillett lies 29 miles off, Marinette another 29 miles. Close by you have: Kiss Lake near enough 0.5 miles, High Falls Reservoir within 1.8 miles, Thunder River near enough 2.3 miles, Makwa Lake within 3.3 miles and Woods Lake near enough 3.4 miles. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Joy Lake

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Public occurrence data for Marinette County names brown trout, rainbow trout and largemouth bass. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. At Joy Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 68°F and January reads 13°F. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about mid April. Averages place the thaw at mid April and the freeze at early December. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. Joy Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. A boat ramp sits 0.9 miles away, so trailered boats can get on. The nearest mapped parking is 0.9 miles away, so the last stretch is on foot. There is a pier recorded roughly half a mile away. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Kiss Lake sits 0.5 miles off and takes the overflow. Ask locally about Joy Lake if anything is unclear.