Shiner Lake Fishing Guide, Forest County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Shiner Lake is a Forest County water, in Wisconsin. The surface lies 1,575 feet up. It covers about 16 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. For a base, Crandon sits 18 miles out. Nashville follows at 21 miles, then Antigo at 31 miles. More in the same country: Torpee Springs after 1.8 miles, Mosquito Lake roughly 2.4 miles, Range Line Lake after 2.7 miles, Surprise Lake roughly 3.5 miles and Spring Lake after 3.7 miles. Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Shiner Lake

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Across Forest County, recorded fish include brown trout, largemouth bass and yellow perch. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Shiner Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 11°F in January and 66°F in July. Spring and autumn carry the fishing; summer and winter test it. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around mid April. Break-up sits around mid April on average, with the water closing again about late November. The first weeks of open water and the last are the ones to plan for. Plan around that when you fish Shiner Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Nothing formal is recorded here: no ramp, no car park, no marked path. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. For a change of water, Torpee Springs is 1.8 miles distant. Signs at Shiner Lake carry more weight than any list.