Fishing Physa Lake in Bayfield County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Out in Bayfield County, Wisconsin, sits Physa Lake. It lies 1,198 feet above sea level. It covers about 9 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. On size it sits at the modest end of our Bayfield County list. Start from Lake Nebagamon, 21 miles down the road. Ashland follows at 23 miles, then Washburn at 26 miles. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Physa Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Survey and observation records for Bayfield County include rainbow smelt, brown trout, yellow perch, rainbow trout and white sucker. County data is a starting point rather than a guarantee. On Physa Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 66°F and January at 9°F. Hard water is a season in its own right here. After mid April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Open water usually runs from mid April until about late November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. Plan any trip to Physa Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. No made access appears within a short radius, so plan to park on a verge and walk. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. If the gate is shut, Planorbis Lake at 0.3 miles is the nearest alternative. What applies at Physa Lake may have changed since it was mapped.