Fishing Juneau County 
           by Stephen J. Norling

The fishing does not get much better than it is here in Juneau County. We are blessed with numerous areas for fishing and just about any type of fishing anyone could want. For the fisher who wants the larger waters, two of the five largest lakes in Wisconsin are along the eastern border of the county. These are the Petenwell Flowage and The Castle Rock Flowage. These two flowages provide excellent walleye fishing along with bass, pan fish and many other species. Petenwell Lake is also producing significant catches of musky. There are many boat landings along both of these flowages making access to them very easy. For those who like smaller lakes and flowages, Juneau County is a rare adventure. Most of the communities along the Lemonweir River such as Mauston and New Lisbon have dams creating small flowages that offer excellent fishing. Along the Yellow River, the dam at Necedah creates a flowage filled with fish. This is a good walleye and northern lake. There are also several flowages in the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge and The Meadow Valley Wisconsin Conservation Area that provide excellent fishing. Many of these flowages can only be fished from shore or with a canoe although a couple of them such as Eagle Nest Flowage do have boat landings. Eagle Nest is an excellent lake for crappies. Many of the other flowages are limited to bullheads and northern pike. However some of the best northern fishing I have had has been in the Sprague Flowage in the Necedah National Wildlife Refuge.

For those people who like to fish the rivers, Juneau County is blessed there too. We have the Wisconsin River as our eastern boundary. The river is world famous for its walleye and bass fishing along with many other species. This is a river big enough for just about any boat that is used for river fishing. Two smaller rivers located in the county are the Lemonweir and the Yellow. These are excellent rivers for fishing from shore or floating down in a canoe. They both contain a variety of fish. 

Of all the fishing available in Juneau County, trout fishing is my favorite. Juneau County has its share of trout streams. There is the Little Lemonweir River, upstream from state highway 12, which is a Class IV trout stream. There is the West Petenwell Ditch, which is a class III stream, and there are at least a dozen Class I & II trout streams in the southern half of the county. This leaves a lot of options open when it comes to trout fishing. You have opportunities for fly fishing, spinner fishing or live bait fishing.

Juneau County is my favorite place for fishing. While you may be able to go to another area and find better fishing for some of the individual species that you are after, I do not believe that there is an area where a better variety may be found. There are some super trout streams and some great musky waters in other areas, but the variety is right here in Juneau County. So if you are looking for me out on the water, look in Juneau County; that’s where I will probably be. Hope to see you there soon.

Stephen J. Norling is a free lance writer and outdoorsman who spends a lot of time plying his craft throughout Juneau County.