Portage Lake has a lot of weed edges, dramatic dropoffs and points that attract walleyes. "Since Portage Lake is connected to Lake Michigan, there are often large Lake Michigan walleyes that come and go out of Portage Lake to feed in the winter," Martin said. "There is a large forage base because there is a lot of perch, shad and other bait fish the walleyes can feed on all winter."

There is a small tributary that feeds into Portage Lake but no large rivers. "Since there isn't a large river feeding into the lake, the first ice can be a great time to fish walleyes on the lake," Martin advised.

When fishing Portage Lake, Martin focuses most of his efforts in front of the points or small fingers of land that jet out away from the shoreline. "There are points all over the lake," he said. "Anglers should find one and get out in front of it in about 20-40 feet of water and start fishing. Early in the season, many of the weeds along these points are still alive, and the baitfish are living in the weeds, which attracts the walleyes. There are several points on the north side of the lake that walleyes seem to spend a lot of time near."

There is one point on the west end of the lake before the channel that often produces large walleyes for Martin. However, he says anglers should use caution when fishing near the channel. "I am cautious when I fish near the channel," he said. "There is a current there, so the ice may be thinner than anywhere else on the lake." During the middle of the day, Martin often fishes in deeper water in front of the points. He goes into shallow water first thing in the morning and just before dark.

Martin believes the best time to fish Portage is either first or last ice. "The problem I have encountered on Portage Lake is because a large river doesn't feed the lake, the fishing can slow down when the ice gets thick in the middle of the winter," he explained. "If we don't get a hard winter and the ice stays moderately thick, the fishing is usually good. However, if it gets really cold and the ice gets thick, I think the walleyes move out of the lake."

LONG LAKE
Long Lake in Grand Traverse County is 2,860 acres and is one of Martin's favorite lakes to fish in the winter. "I think Long Lake is one of the better inland lakes for walleyes and is often overlooked by serious anglers," he said. "I am starting to regularly catch fish in the 21- to 25-inch range. The lake has a lot of underwater humps and points that the fish pile up on in the winter."