South Lake Fishing Guide, Iron County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  The Iron County end of Wisconsin holds South Lake. It stands 1,568 feet above sea level. At about 31 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. A shoreline of some 1.1 miles keeps the choices simple. Park Falls lies 12 miles from the water. Beyond it, Lac du Flambeau at 15 miles and Phillips at 21 miles. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on South Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Reported across Iron County: walleye, northern pike, yellow perch and muskellunge. The county list is broader than any single water. At South Lake the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 66°F, while January sits near 10°F. Hard water is a season in its own right here. Once it clears, about mid April, the fishing comes on quickly. Ice clears near mid April and comes back about late November in a typical year. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Time your trip to South Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. The nearest alternative is Camp Four Springs, 1 mile out. Nothing on South Lake should be assumed from this page alone.