Fish of Cranberry Lake & The Minong Flowage

Brown Bullhead  can be depended upon to bite at almost anything anywhere at almost any time of day, put up a worthy fight on the line, and once caught, make a tasty meal .

Bluegills favorite bait is the plain garden worms, but they can be caught on a number of different types of lures. The fly fisher can have fun with poppers, especially in spring and early summer, when nests are concentrated in shallow water. Most large bluegills are taken in deep water during the summer months by drifting with the wind using worms. Wintertime jigging in the weed beds with grubs or mousies on ice jigs also produce excellent results. 

Black Crappie are considered an excellent game fish when taken on light tackle. Extreme care must be taken in landing these fish because their mouths are very tender. Anglers specializing in catching black crappie know that to be successful the bait must be kept constantly moving. The best baits are small minnows, small maribou-covered jigs, plastic minnows, or small streamer flies cast along the outer edges of weed beds. The crappie lies in weed beds in deep water during the day and bite best in early morning or toward evening. In summer, with the abundance of small fish for feed, they are more difficult to catch. Small minnows are used as bait in winter.

Rainbow Trout feed on small fish, insects, and crayfish. They wander extensively, moving along the shore. Generally this species require a stream for spawning and early development, and a sea or large lake for maturation. Spawning occurs in the spring, and spending the next 2 years in the parent stream, and then migrate to a large body of water.

Catfish, despite the somewhat derogatory name, these prolific members of the catfish family have earned the grudging respect of anglers in Wisconsin and scientists all over the world.

You think you've caught a record fish? If you think you or someone you know has caught a fish that might be a state record, there are a number of things you should do: don't clean or freeze the fish keep the fish cool - preferably on ice get the fish weighed as soon as possible on a certified scale (found in grocery, hardware stores, etc.) and witnessed by an observer contact the nearest DNR office to get the fish species positively identified and to find out whether the fish is a state record obtain and complete a record fish application [PDF 65KB] An official record fish application must accompany all prospective record fish entries. Fishing Wisconsin 's waters is enjoyed by many, but only a few anglers apply their skills to the extent that they catch a verified record fish. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recognizes anglers who have legally taken the largest fish on record by hook and line, as well as those fish that have been taken by alternate methods (for example, spearing or bowfishing).