Porcupine Lake in Oconto County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  You will find Porcupine Lake in Oconto County, Wisconsin. Mixed forest runs right down to the water. With some 33 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. It is low-lying compared with other Wisconsin water we list. For a base, Oconto Falls sits 8.6 miles out. Green Bay sits 34 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. A county line runs close by, so local bylaws can differ within a short drive.

• Where to Fish on Porcupine Lake

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. County-wide records name brown trout, largemouth bass, bluegill, yellow perch and northern pike. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Read Porcupine Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 69°F; the cold one sits at 14°F. Hard water is a season in its own right here. After mid April the shallows warm and the fish move up. The open-water window runs from around mid April to about early December in an average year. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Porcupine Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. First Lake at 3.2 miles is the sensible second choice. Nothing here settles the position at Porcupine Lake for certain.