Lipsett Lake in Burnett County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Lipsett Lake sits within Burnett County in Wisconsin. Pine and birch runs right down to the water. It measures some 393 acres, and wind has room to build across it. The edge covers about 3.4 miles, enough to hold several distinct areas. On our Burnett County list it sits near the top for size. Nearest place of any size is Spooner, 8.5 miles away. Shell Lake is 11 miles and Cumberland 24 miles. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Lipsett Lake

  Depth went unrecorded, which puts the reading back on you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Reported across Burnett County: brown trout, northern pike, largemouth bass, bluegill and pumpkinseed. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. At Lipsett Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about 9°F and July at about 69°F, the water has a wide range to work through. The year runs cold to warm and back, with clear transitions. Ice-out usually falls in mid April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Averages suggest open water from about mid April through to roughly late November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Lipsett Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Nothing is listed nearby for parking or launching a boat. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Bass Lake at 1.2 miles is the sensible second choice. For Lipsett Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.