Arbor Vitae is a good place to visit if you’re looking to target largemouth bass in Vilas County. With Big Arbor Vitae Lake here, you could just stay on this lake for your entire trip while fishing for largemouth bass. There are good numbers of them with some big fish also. Add all the other species of fish and this is a great lake to fish for several days or even longer. While this is the only big lake to fish here for good numbers of largemouth bass, there are plenty of other lakes that also offer good fishing too. Carroll Lake, Little Arbor Vitae Lake, Madeline Lake and Ross Lake are are worth at least a half day fishing for largemouth bass. The Bittersweet Lakes State Natural Area gives anglers a little more of an adventure and there are other smaller lakes in the area as well. You have a lot of options to fish for largemouth bass around Arbor Vitae, Wisconsin.
Bittersweet Lakes State Natural Area
Four soft water seepage lakes, each separated by an isthmus are the main features of the natural area. The lakes are Bittersweet, Oberlin, Smith and Prong. The lakes offer good fishing, especially for panfish and largemouth bass. You will have to portage between the lakes, but for many people, the extra work to fish here is totally worth the additional effort.
Bittersweet Lake
Bittersweet Lake is a 104 acre lake located in Vilas County. It has a maximum depth of 31 feet. Visitors have access to the lake from a public boat landing. Fish include panfish, largemouth bass and northern pike. All of these species of fish are listed as common by the DNR.
Oberlin Lake
Oberlin Lake is a 42 acre lake located in Vilas County. It has a maximum depth of 25 feet. Visitors have access to the lake from a public boat landing. Fish include panfish and largemouth bass. Panfish and largemouth bass are considered common here by the Wisconsin DNR.
Smith Lake
Smith Lake is a 41 acre lake located in Vilas County. It has a maximum depth of 18 feet. Fish include panfish and largemouth bass. Panfish are considered abundant in the lake while largemouth bass are listed as common by the DNR.
Prong Lake
Prong Lake is a 31 acre lake located in Vilas County. It has a maximum depth of 50 feet. Fish include panfish and largemouth bass. According to the DNR, panfish are abundant in the lake while largemouth bass are listed as common.
Other Area Lakes
Big Arbor Vitae Lake
Big Arbor Vitae Lake is a 1,070 acre lake located in Vilas County. It has a maximum depth of 41 feet. Fish include muskie, largemouth bass, walleye, smallmouth bass and panfish. According to the DNR, muskie and walleye are abundant in the lake while panfish and largemouth bass are considered common.
Carrol Lake
Carrol Lake is a 330 acre lake located in Oneida, Vilas Counties. It has a maximum depth of 27 feet. Fish include muskie, largemouth bass, northern pike, walleye and panfish. According to the DNR, panfish are abundant in the lake while largemouth bass and muskie are considered common. Northern pike and walleye are listed as present.
Little Arbor Vitae Lake
Little Arbor Vitae Lake is a 480 acre lake located in Vilas County. It has a maximum depth of 32 feet. Fish include muskie, walleye, largemouth bass and panfish. According to the DNR, all these species of fish are considered common in the lake.
Madeline Lake
Madeline Lake is a 172 acre lake located in Vilas, Oneida Counties. It has a maximum depth of 17 feet. Fish include muskie, walleye, northern pike, largemouth bass and panfish. According to the DNR, panfish are abundant in the lake while muskie and largemouth bass are considered common. Northern pike and walleye are listed as present.
Ross Lake
Ross Lake is a 149 acre lake located in Vilas County. It has a maximum depth of 14 feet. Fish include largemouth bass and panfish. According to the DNR, largemouth bass and panfish are considered common in the lake.
