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Rating depth structure for crappie.
Shared by DepthScout anglers. Exact spots stay private, always.
6-acre lake in Iron County, Wisconsin. The lake tops out around 3 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. Here's the year, species by species, as the scoring engine sees it.
The outline encloses 6 acres, worked by 0.4 miles of shoreline. Its 1.3 shoreline index means few bank features; the contours below do the pattern work. Nothing on this chart breaks 15 ft, which makes the whole surface littoral: weeds, bait and ambush cover everywhere. It sits in Iron County. Ferry Lake sits 1 mi north — the closest neighbouring chart.
Spring puts yellow perch in skinny water — 1 to 3 ft is the zone. Summer fish stay in 1 to 3 ft, and winter fish hold in 1 to 3 ft. Deep basin is the standout, a deep basin at roughly 3 ft, rated prime for fall yellow perch. Plan around early morning in the warm months. A drop-shot micro plastics or a small spoon tipped with worm covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 3 ft | midday & dawn | open water | Small jig + curly tail, Perch-pattern micro crank |
| Summer | 1 to 3 ft | dawn | Deep basin (3 ft) | Drop-shot micro plastics, Small spoon tipped with worm |
| Fall | 1 to 3 ft | midday | Deep basin (3 ft) | Jigging spoon (small), Perch rig / spreader |
| Winter | 1 to 3 ft | midday & dawn | Deep basin (3 ft) | Tungsten jig + spikes, Rattle spoon (small) |
Spring crappie on Rice Lake hold shallow, usually 1 to 3 ft. Depth-wise the year is flat: 1 to 3 ft in summer, 1 to 3 ft once it turns cold. Put Deep basin first on the milk run — a deep basin near 3 ft that grades prime for winter. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled).
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 3 ft | midday & dawn | open water | 1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub |
| Summer | 1 to 3 ft | dawn & dusk | Break off the point (1 ft) | Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 1 to 3 ft | dawn | Break off the point (1 ft) | Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2") |
| Winter | 1 to 3 ft | midday | Deep basin (3 ft) | Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon |
Spring bluegill on Rice Lake hold shallow, usually 1 to 3 ft. Depth-wise the year is flat: 1 to 3 ft in summer, 1 to 3 ft once it turns cold. The chart's best answer is Deep basin — deep basin, 3 ft, prime for winter. Prime time lands in early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 3 ft | midday & dusk | open water | 1/32 oz jig + micro plastic, Tiny popper (evenings) |
| Summer | 1 to 3 ft | dawn & dusk | open water | Small sponge spider (fly), Micro tube jig |
| Fall | 1 to 3 ft | midday | Break off the point (1 ft) | Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped |
| Winter | 1 to 3 ft | midday | Deep basin (3 ft) | Tungsten ice jig + plastic, Tiny spoon |
Spring puts pumpkinseed in skinny water — 1 to 3 ft is the zone. Summer fish stay in 1 to 3 ft, and winter fish hold in 1 to 3 ft. Winter pumpkinseed concentrate at Deep basin, a prime-rated deep basin around 3 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around the evening and early morning. A micro tube or a sponge spider (fly) covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 3 ft | midday & dusk | open water | Micro jig under a float, Tiny beetle-spin |
| Summer | 1 to 3 ft | dusk & dawn | open water | Micro tube, Sponge spider (fly) |
| Fall | 1 to 3 ft | dusk & dawn | Break off the point (1 ft) | Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped |
| Winter | 1 to 3 ft | dawn | Deep basin (3 ft) | Tungsten ice jig + plastic, Tiny spoon |
Rice Lake carries 3 mapped structure features, topping out (or rather bottoming out) at Main-lake point, about 3 ft down.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Wisconsin waters are set by the Wisconsin DNR — and special regulations can apply to Rice Lake specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Wisconsin fishing regulations →
Rice Lake is about 3 ft (1 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, crappie, bluegill, pumpkinseed on Rice 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.
Deep basin is the top-rated area: a deep basin in about 3 ft of water that rates prime for yellow perch in fall. Scroll up to the map for the complete spot list by 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.
Fishing on Rice 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.
Ferry Lake 1 mi · Bearskull Lake 1 mi · Townline Lake 1 mi · Tackle Lake 2 mi · Miles Lake 2 mi · Muskie Lake 2 mi · Big Pine Lake 2 mi · Emerson Lake 2 mi · Lower Springstead Lake 2 mi · Hourglass Lake 2 mi · Teal Lake 2 mi · Upper Springstead Lake 2 mi
See how Rice Lake stacks up: best crappie lakes in Wisconsin · best bluegill lakes in Wisconsin · best yellow perch lakes in Wisconsin · best pumpkinseed lakes in Wisconsin
More water nearby: Iron County fishing maps (158 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.