Wisconsin River below Whirlpool Rapids

One of my favorite places to fish for Small Mouth Bass is the Wisconsin River where miles of tree lined shores and eagles soaring through the skies remind me just how lucky I am to live in the Tomahawk area. This is a day trip that combines both great fishing and fun on the water.

You’ll start your adventure near the Camp Ten Ski Hill just off of county trunk A between Rhinelander and Tomahawk and you will finish off the day when you get to the bridge over county trunk A that signals the beginning of Lake Alice. This float down the Wisconsin River is a little over 12 miles and will take you about 4 to 5 hours if you paddle steady.

The first hour and a half will go by relatively quickly as the current moves along at a faster pace as you near a rapids called Whirlpool. How do you know when you are coming up on the Whirlpool? Don’t worry, you will hear  it before you see it! Whirlpool in the spring time is not for the light hearted or inexperienced  as it drops about four feet between a couple of big boulders, but in the last part of July and mid August after the spring run off is over the water level naturally drops making it quite a bit easier to handle. Leading up to Whirlpool you will find a class II boulder garden rapids which rounds a corner and sets you up for Whirlpool’s drop, make a note here to stay to the right or west side of the river as this will be the best line through.  After you are through Whirlpool the Wisconsin River goes around two islands with the larger Menard’s on your left and a smaller one to the right with a channel going both around and between the islands. Here you will encounter another class II rock garden type rapids which is quite a bit easier than the previous stretch. This is a great place to pull up on one of the islands or rock formations and take a breather, or grab bite to eat and a swim.

Wisconsin River near Menard Island

Now after all that excitement this is where the great fishing part takes over. Below Menard Island the Wisconsin River becomes wider and much slower with large boulders both above and below the surface making the last 7 miles of river a Small Mouth Bass Heaven. Bring your Ultra light gear along with a variety of Rapals, surface plugs and smaller spinner baits as there is nothing like a good fight on Ultra light gear with a feisty Bass.  As you start floating by the big boulders simply cast out just past them and pull your baits through the deep quiet pools that form behind the rocks, this is where the fish are hiding and resting, waiting for their next meal.  What kind of action can you expect?  Last summer I caught 27 Small Mouth Bass ranging anywhere from 12 to 19 inches with the biggest weighing in at just over four pounds. I also landed several nice Walleye which made for a great supper.

So if you’re up for a bit of exercise, excitement and great fishing, a float down the Wisconsin River is a summer Must Do! Remember to practice catch and release and keep only what you are going to have for supper..