Best Places to Fish in Wisconsin: Red Cedar Lake

Red Cedar Lake is a 1,897 acre lake located in Barron and Washburn Counties. It has a maximum depth of 53 feet. Visitors have access to the lake from public boat landings along the western, eastern and southern shorelines, and anglers can expect to find healthy populations of a variety of fish including northern pike, walleye, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, crappie, perch and bluegill.

Because of the lake’s numerous structures including deep holes, humps, islands, and varied underwater habitat, fish can be anywhere and it is important to keep moving until you locate active schools. Trolling or drifting with live bait or artificials is a great way to narrow down the most active areas.

Interactive Lake Map

For a more detailed lake map and up to the minute fishing reports follow the Red Cedar Lake waterway page on Fishidy.

Here are some tips for locating and catching fish on Red Cedar Lake:

● Yellow or yellow/white lures can be the key to catching smallmouth bass on this lake. During summer, try crayfish patterns worked tight along the bottom.

● Concentrate on the inlet from Balsam Lake for walleye during early season, since the main lake’s water warms slower than many area lakes due to its size and depth. Late evening is the prime time to work crankbaits over the rocky gravel humps and submerged points for walleye.

● The rock bar on the tip of the peninsula on the northern side of the lake is excellent for walleye, perch, smallmouth and rock bass. Fish the edges of the drop-off during the day and the top during evenings and cloudy days.

● Gravel and rubble shoreline surrounding the two large islands in the middle of the lake hold fish all year long. Work the steep breaklines with jigheads or deep-diving lures.

● Good numbers of panfish and northern pike can be found in the heavy weed cover in the south bay. Give it a try in early spring before the weeds get thick.

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