Fishing at Ross Lake, Forest County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Wisconsin holds Ross Lake, in Forest County. The surface lies 1,506 feet up. With some 65 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Bank access stretches around 1.4 miles in total. Crandon at 15 miles is the nearest place to stop. The big place round here is Green Bay, 86 miles distant. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Ross Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. 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. Across Forest County, recorded fish include brown trout, largemouth bass, yellow perch and northern pike. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. Read Ross Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 65°F; by January the average is down near 11°F. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around mid April. Break-up near mid April, freeze-up near late November: that is the shape of an average year. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. The season on Ross Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. For a change of water, Cavour Pond is 3 miles distant. Nothing here settles the position at Ross Lake for certain.