Sign inSign up free Sign inSign up free Sign inSign up freeLake depth chart
Today's read
Rating depth structure for largemouth bass.
Shared by DepthScout anglers. Exact spots stay private, always.
158-acre lake in Vilas County, Wisconsin. The lake tops out around 11 ft. This chart interpolates between a real shoreline and a known maximum depth. It will point you at likely water, but it is not a navigation product. Every species below gets its seasonal read from the same numbers driving the chart.
Little Portage Lake maps at 158 acres behind 2.2 miles of shoreline. The basin is a simple one (shoreline index 1.3) — close to a bowl, so the structure on the chart matters more than the bank. There is no deep basin to speak of — the entire surface is under ~15 ft, prime weed water end to end. End to end it runs roughly 0.7 mi, about 0.6 mi across. It sits in Vilas County. Its nearest charted neighbour, Lake O' Pines, is 1 mi to the north.
Start shallow in spring: yellow perch sit in 3 to 11 ft that time of year. They don't go far with the seasons — 3 to 11 ft covers summer, 3 to 11 ft covers winter. Top water on the chart: Shallow bay flat, a weed flat in the 3 ft range, prime in spring. Fish it in early morning and you'll meet the bite. Throw a drop-shot micro plastics or a small spoon tipped with worm until the fish tell you otherwise.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 11 ft | midday & dawn | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Small jig + curly tail, Perch-pattern micro crank |
| Summer | 3 to 11 ft | dawn | Deep basin (9 ft) | Drop-shot micro plastics, Small spoon tipped with worm |
| Fall | 3 to 11 ft | midday | Deep basin (9 ft) | Jigging spoon (small), Perch rig / spreader |
| Winter | 3 to 11 ft | midday & dawn | Deep basin (9 ft) | Tungsten jig + spikes, Rattle spoon (small) |
Come spring, look for northern pike tight to the bank in 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 3 to 11 ft in summer and finish the year down in 3 to 11 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 3 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. A bucktail or a weedless spoon over cabbage is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 8 ft | midday & dawn | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | #5 inline spinner, Spoon (red/white) |
| Summer | 3 to 11 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Bucktail, Weedless spoon over cabbage |
| Fall | 3 to 11 ft | midday & dawn | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Big rubber (Bull Dawg style), Husky-style jerkbait |
| Winter | 3 to 11 ft | midday | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Tip-ups, Large jigging spoon |
When the water first warms, muskellunge slide up into 3 to 11 ft. There's no big seasonal slide here — summer means 3 to 11 ft, winter 3 to 11 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Break off the point: a drop-off around 5 ft that scores prime in fall. In summer the feeding windows fall in the evening and early morning. Keep a double-10 bucktail or a topwater (walk-the-dog / creeper) rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 11 ft | dusk | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Smaller bucktail (#8 blades), 6" glide bait |
| Summer | 3 to 11 ft | dusk & dawn | Main-lake point (8 ft) | Double-10 bucktail, Topwater (walk-the-dog / creeper) |
| Fall | 3 to 11 ft | midday & dusk | Break off the point (5 ft) | Big rubber (Bull Dawg style), 10"+ glide bait |
| Winter | 3 to 11 ft | midday | Deep basin (9 ft) | Large rubber, crawled slow |
When the water first warms, largemouth bass slide up into 2 to 10 ft. Summer is a 3 to 11 ft game here, winter a 3 to 11 ft one. Start at Shallow bay flat. It's a weed flat holding about 3 ft of water and rates prime come spring. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. Keep a texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Spinnerbait, Chatterbait |
| Summer | 3 to 11 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait |
| Fall | 3 to 11 ft | midday & dawn | Main-lake point (8 ft) | Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait |
| Winter | 3 to 11 ft | midday | Break off the point (5 ft) | Blade bait, Jigging spoon |
Come spring, look for crappie tight to the bank in 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 3 to 11 ft in summer and finish the year down in 3 to 11 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Deep basin: a deep basin around 9 ft that scores prime in winter. Best bite is early morning and the evening. A jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) is the honest summer answer here.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 8 ft | midday & dawn | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | 1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub |
| Summer | 3 to 11 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 3 to 11 ft | dawn | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2") |
| Winter | 3 to 11 ft | midday | Deep basin (9 ft) | Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon |
When the water first warms, bluegill slide up into 1 to 6 ft. By summer they slide out to 3 to 11 ft, and by winter most fish are in 3 to 11 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 3 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Keep a small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig rigged through the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 6 ft | midday & dusk | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | 1/32 oz jig + micro plastic, Tiny popper (evenings) |
| Summer | 3 to 11 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Small sponge spider (fly), Micro tube jig |
| Fall | 3 to 11 ft | midday | Shallow bay flat (3 ft) | Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped |
| Winter | 3 to 11 ft | midday | Deep basin (9 ft) | Tungsten ice jig + plastic, Tiny spoon |
Little Portage Lake also holds pumpkinseed (2 to 10 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
5 pieces of structure are mapped here — Deep basin, around 9 ft, is the deepest of them.
| Date | Species | Count | Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025* | Black Crappie (large fingerling) | 2,100 | ~4" |
| 2025* | Yellow Perch (large fingerling) | 2,100 | ~4" |
| 2024* | Walleye (large fingerling) | 1,000 | ~5" |
* Approximate date (agency reports month or season only). Source: Wisconsin DNR fish-stocking summary, retrieved 2026-08-18.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Wisconsin waters are set by the Wisconsin DNR — and special regulations can apply to Little Portage Lake specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Wisconsin fishing regulations →
Little Portage Lake is about 11 ft (3 m) deep at its deepest point. The contours here are modeled from the water's real shape and maximum depth, so treat them as a rough guide.
Anglers target yellow perch, northern pike, muskellunge, largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed on Little Portage Lake. These come from the Wisconsin DNR's per-lake fish listing; where the DNR lists a group (panfish, catfish, trout) the specific species are resolved from Wisconsin's fish distribution by the lake's location, depth and habitat.
Shallow bay flat is the top-rated area: a weed flat in about 3 ft of water that rates prime for yellow perch in spring. The map above holds the full rated-spot list for every species and season.
For yellow perch, the summer bite is best in early morning. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Yes — per Wisconsin DNR fish-stocking summary records, Little Portage Lake was most recently stocked 2025 with 2,100 black crappie (large fingerling). The full stocking history is listed above.
Fishing on Little Portage Lake is regulated by the Wisconsin DNR. Check the official Wisconsin regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.
Lake O' Pines 1 mi · Pinkeye Lake 1 mi · Perch Lake 1 mi · Big Portage Lake 1 mi · Lac des Fleurs 2 mi · Curve Lake 2 mi · Landing Lake 2 mi · Mill Lake 2 mi · Williams Lake 3 mi · Lake Pleasant 3 mi · Ethel Lake 3 mi · George Lake 3 mi
See how Little Portage Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Wisconsin · best northern pike lakes in Wisconsin · best crappie lakes in Wisconsin · best bluegill lakes in Wisconsin
More water nearby: Vilas County fishing maps (507 charts). Browse all Wisconsin fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.