Spider Lake Fishing near Lac du Flambeau, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Spider Lake sits in Vilas County, out in Wisconsin. Height above sea level is 1,594 feet. At some 277 acres it is far too large to cover on foot in a day. Few waters listed in Vilas County are bigger. Lac du Flambeau is the closest place, 11 miles off. Then Wakefield, 25 miles, and Bessemer, 27 miles. Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Spider Lake

  Nothing in our records gives a depth for this one. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Reported across Vilas County: bluegill, yellow perch, walleye and largemouth bass. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. On Spider Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 9°F in January to roughly 65°F in July. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around mid April. The season between ice runs from about mid April to late November. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. Anyone fishing Spider Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. Overnight stays are possible half a mile away. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. Stone Lake, 0.6 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Treat Spider Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.