Riley Lake Fishing near Amherst, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Look for Riley Lake in Portage County, Wisconsin. The ground around here is pine and birch. It covers about 7 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. Most waters listed here for Portage County are larger. For supplies, Amherst is 7.6 miles out. For a city, Green Bay is 67 miles off. The line between counties passes nearby, which can change who manages the water.

• Where to Fish on Riley Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Portage County records list brown trout, rainbow trout, common carp and bluegill among the fish reported. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. The shape of Riley Lake decides where the fish sit.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 70°F and January at 14°F. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Ice-out usually falls in early April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Climate averages put the opening at about early April and the closing near early December. The middle of summer slows a little, with dawn and dusk carrying it. That shapes the year on Riley Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. No car park, ramp or path is recorded within easy reach of the shore. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Failing this one, try Peters Lake, 0.6 miles away. Treat access at Riley Lake as something to verify.