OTTAWA LAKE
Smallmouths never have seemed to get much attention from Upper Peninsula residents.

"The locals don't focus much on the lakes with smallmouths in them," offered Department of Natural Resources' Northern Lake Michigan Management Unit fisheries biologist Bill Ziegler. "Those lakes tend to be clearwater lakes, and the fish in them tend to be deeper. We actually have a lot of good smallmouth lakes, though."

It could be possible that in many of the western U.P.'s best smallmouth lakes, anglers don't even realize the fish are there.

"Iron County's Ottawa Lake is kind of a unique situation," Ziegler said. "The lake was a pretty good smallmouth lake to begin with. Beginning in 2005, the USFWS started doing a study on the rusty crayfish population in the lake, and the lake is going to be open to catch-and-release fishing only. So, bass that are already in the lake will have the chance to get much bigger."

According to Gloria Luckey of Luckey's Sport Shop on Iron River, Ottawa Lake already has some very respectable smallies in it.

"Ottawa Lake has some pretty good natural reproduction in it, so you're likely to catch a variety of different-sized bass," Luckey said, "but smallmouths in the 5-pound range aren't uncommon."

Ottawa Lake is located just west of Iron River off Ottawa Lake Road. Covering some 590 acres, Ottawa Lake has depths to 90 feet and is home to some decent populations of lake trout and walleyes, in addition to the smallmouths. The bass tend to relate to the subtle contours that exemplify the lake. Working jigs and live bait on light line in the 10- to 40-foot depths can be very productive. Sight-fishing for bass when they are actively spawning in June and July can be challenging and exciting.

There is a public boat launch located on the southeast corner. For more information, contact Luckey's Sport Shop at (906) 265-5339.

SMOKY LAKE
"Smoky Lake is another lake that has a very viable smallmouth population," claimed Ziegler. Located on the Wisconsin-Michigan border, a small portion of Smoky Lake's 590 acres lies within the state of Wisconsin. The boat launch on Smoky Lake is actually located in Wisconsin off Highway 17 and is suitable for smaller watercraft.

The maximum depth of Smoky Lake is 60 feet, but it features a lot of irregular contours and humps that are smallmouth magnets. Try either side of the point on the east side of the lake. Just south of the point is a series of humps and depressions that concentrate summer bass. Another hotspot is just a little farther south in the middle of the lake where a hump rises up from 30 feet of water. A well-defined weedline along the west shore is another place to prospect. A very clear lake, anglers will do well to use light, clear line with small tubes and crankbaits.

For information on motels, restaurants, and amenities in the Iron River area, contact the Iron County Tourism Council at (906) 265-3822, or online at www.tryiron.org.

LAKE ANTOINE
"Lake Antoine is another very good smallmouth lake that has good size structure," Ziegler said. Lake Antoine's walleyes get most of the attention from local anglers, but the lake has quietly developed into one of the U.P.'s premier smallmouth waters.