Mud Lake Fishing near Montello, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Mud Lake is one of the Marquette County waters in Wisconsin. What surrounds it is rolling bush. It covers about 12 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. Most waters listed here for Marquette County are larger. Start from Montello, 3.4 miles down the road. Madison sits 51 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Mud Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Survey and observation records for Marquette County include brown trout, bluegill, rainbow trout, largemouth bass and northern pike. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. The near bank of Mud Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 71°F and January reads 15°F. Cold winters and warm summers give a wide working range. Break-up comes around early April, and the run that follows is short and strong. Climate figures give an open season running early April to early December. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. On Mud Lake the same rules apply, with local timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. For a change of water, Clearwater Lake is 0.2 miles distant. Confirm access to Mud Lake locally before you travel.