Ole Lake Fishing Guide, Douglas County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Ole Lake is one of the Douglas County listings for Wisconsin. The surface lies 1,148 feet up. Small at around 14 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. Our Douglas County list holds plenty of bigger water. Lake Nebagamon lies 12 miles from the water. Saint Paul sits 124 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Ole Lake

  Depth figures are not published for this one. 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. Douglas County records list yellow perch, walleye, white sucker, black crappie and rainbow smelt among the fish reported. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Ole Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate records put July near 67°F and January near 8°F. A solid cap is the normal state through winter. The lid usually goes in mid April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. The lid tends to go about mid April and return around late November. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. The season on Ole Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. A protected area covers this ground, which usually means restrictions on access. Walleye come to jigs worked slow near bottom, and to trolled crankbaits along the drops at dusk. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. Island Lake, 0.4 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Check the position on Ole Lake before loading the car.