Want to target lake trout through the ice? Here are some smaller waters that fit the bill in Michigan

Two of Michigan’s most popular destinations for winter lake trout are Crystal Lake and Higgins Lake.

Both are substantial, deep lakes that have ideal lake trout habitat, but both require sustained cold temperatures to freeze solidly to allow safe ice angling. That hasn’t happened in recent winters. But there are other smaller lakes that, given even a semblance of winter, can provide ice anglers a lake trout fix.

Deep lakes in northwest Lower Michigan, like Green, Duck, Big Blue, and Big Glen, freeze sooner, and with more consistency than bigger lakes like Higgins and Crystal, and offer the opportunity to target lake trout in the winter.

Big Blue Lake

Kalkaska County’s Big Blue Lake was one lake that Michigan Department of Natural Fisheries Biologist Mark Tonello cited as a consistent producer of winter trout and an alternative to bigger water bodies.

“Big Blue Lake kind of flies under the radar,” Tonello said. “It’s not a big lake at 114 acres, but we (DNR) stock it yearly. It has good public access, and you don’t need transportation to fish it because of its size. Big Blue has a population of ciscoes that supports the lake trout population and produces some giant pike. The last time we surveyed the lake (2019) it turned up a 34-inch lake trout. You’re not going to produce fish of that proportion without a reliable food source.”

Big Blue Lake is not that big, which accounts for some anonymity. Still, its lake trout can be challenging to locate. The trout are constantly moving up and down in the water column depending on the time of day, and they make regular trips into shallows to hunt the contours that ring the shoreline where prey is more prevalent.

Ciscoes tends to suspend over deep water. In that case, the lake trout shadow the forage and can be tightly schooled beneath them. Yellow perch and emerald shiners relate to the bottom, so when lakers are targeting them, they can be found much shallower.

“Due to the oligotrophic nature of the Big Blue Lake (deep, cold, and relatively infertile), it is not physically capable of hosting large populations of warm water and cool water fish species,” Tonello said.

Expect lakers anywhere from just legal (15 inches) to 24 inches. Larger fish are possible. The DNR stocks between 500 and 1,000 yearling lake trout (5 inches in length or longer) each year including 1,257 in 2022, 710 in ’23, and 770 last spring.

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Anglers should come equipped to try a variety of techniques. Electronics, especially newer forward-facing sonar, can be a godsend for finding concentrations of lake trout. A good ploy is to spot some tip-ups over deep water and then jig at the base of shoreline contours. Use heavy spoons, like Swedish pimples, or lipless crankbaits.

Public access to Big Blue Lake can be gained at the DNR boat launch on the southern shore of the lake. Jack’s Sport Shop, (231) 258-8892 in Kalkaska, is a good source of information, live bait, and fishing reports.

Green and Duck

“Green and Duck lakes are similar in size and produce similar fisheries when it comes to lake trout,” said Fisheries Biologist Heather Hettinger, who works from the DNR office in Traverse City.

“I wouldn’t characterize them as easy,” she said. “You need to put in your time to figure them out and find fish, but when you do, you’ll find some nice lakers in both lakes. There’s not a ton of fish, but trout in the 4- to 8-pound range are prevalent, and double-digit specimens are caught every winter.”

Both lakes are located in Grand Traverse County and see annual plants of lake trout, with Green Lake getting 9,000 yearling trout and Duck Lake receiving another 8,300. Both lakes get an occasional shot-in-the-arm from an excess of lake trout in the federal hatchery.

In 2022, both lakes got an additional 42,000 fall fingerlings. Some of those get scarfed up by the abundant populations of smallmouths found in both lakes and giant northerns that cruise the depths and chow down on the hapless trout. Nonetheless, there should be an abundance of spunky 16-inch and bigger trout in both waters this winter.

Duck Lake comes in at 1,930 acres, and Green Lake occupies 2,000 acres. They are close enough that you can easily fish both on the same day. They share a connection to Interlocken State Park, which provides good access. Both lakes have smelt, emerald shiners, and perch for lakers to grow fat on.

A good ploy is to go out the night before and catch smelt that can be used to target the lake trout the next day. Talk about matching the hatch! And the best part is that you can always eat the smelt if you don’t catch any trout.

You can access Green Lake off of Betsie River Road on the lake’s southwest side and at Diamond Park Road on the north end , as well as Interlochen State Park.

Right off the Betsie River Road access is a great starting point. A deep hole that reaches 100 feet runs nearly half the length of the lake, and harbors trout and smelt all winter.

Another hot spot is off Interlochen State Park, where the lake reaches depths of up to 80 feet. Look for trout to relate to suspended schools of smelt, or look near the base of sharp contours along a point there.

A lot of the effort for winter lake trout on Duck Lake is concentrated near the south end, where you can find water as deep as 98 feet. Target trout in deep water during mid-day but move shallow at dawn accessible. You need to reach Big Glen Lake via Little Glen and dusk and watch for the ever-present hooks below schools of smelt. Try live smelt on tip-ups and jigging spoons, and silver or white tubes.

Big Glen

“One of Big Glen Lake’s characteristics is its variety of fish, but lake trout are definitely one of the most prominent species,” Hettinger said. “The lake tends to get more fishing pressure in the winter when it’s a little more Lake using a snowmobile or four-wheeler to get to the fishing.”

When you do, you find consistent fishing for lakers up to 12 pounds that are a result of the 8,000 yearling trout planted there every year.

Located in Leelanau County, less than 20% of Big Glen Lake is shallower than 15 feet, so it’s ideally suited to lake trout. With depths up to 130 feet, Big Glen Lake is relatively featureless due to eons of sand spilling in from lakeside dunes.

A lot of winter fishing activity is concentrated on the north end of the lake, but trout can be caught anywhere along the 70- to 100-foot contour that rims the lake, or in the expansive flats in between 100 and 125 feet of water.

Look for suspended schools of ciscoes to concentrate trout, or active trout chasing schools of perch and emerald shiners near the bottom. Both are common in the lake.

Now that winter has finally set in look for Big Blue, Green, Duck, and Big Glen lakes to produce at least a hint of long-awaited winter lake trout action.