Pickerel Lake Fishing Guide, Taylor County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  The Taylor County end of Wisconsin holds Pickerel Lake. It stands 1,440 feet above sea level. Surface area runs to about 4 acres — small enough to read in one session. Our Taylor County list holds plenty of bigger water. The town to know is Medford, 12 miles out. It is 126 miles to Saint Paul, the nearest city. No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Pickerel Lake

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Records held for Taylor County cover brown trout, largemouth bass and pumpkinseed. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Read Pickerel Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 67°F and January near 10°F. Hard water is a season in its own right here. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough mid April. From about mid April to around late November, expect open water on the long-run figures. The middle of summer slows a little, with dawn and dusk carrying it. The season on Pickerel Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Mapping shows an empty shoreline: no ramp, no jetty, no marked entry. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Should this one be busy, Lake Nineteen is 0.7 miles off. Check the position at Pickerel Lake before loading the car.