Sunset Lake Fishing in Oneida County, Wisconsin

• Overview

  Sunset Lake is one of the Oneida County listings for Wisconsin. Land around it is mixed forest. It measures about 34 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Start from Rhinelander, 6.2 miles down the road. Green Bay sits 100 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Within easy reach: Snowden Lake roughly 0.6 miles, Second Lake at 0.6 miles, Third Lake roughly 0.8 miles, Del Stengl Lake at 1.1 miles and Moen Lake roughly 1.2 miles. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Sunset Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Across Oneida County, recorded fish include brown trout, walleye, largemouth bass and northern pike. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Sunset Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 66°F and January about 10°F. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. Count the season from break-up, usually mid April. The season between ice runs from about mid April to late November. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. Time your trip to Sunset Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. A carry of half a mile from the nearest parking is the price of fishing here. A campsite is mapped about half a mile away, which makes an early start easier. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Snowden Lake sits 0.6 miles off and takes the overflow. Where Sunset Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.