Planning on heading hear for Memorial weekend. Haven’t fished within 50 miles of this area ever before. Any information would be GREATLY appreciated. I hear fishing for eyes/crappies can be tough. If anybody would care to share a general area to start things out for this trip (PM me). We are camping right on the lake at one of the cty campgrounds I believe. Any spots to try or feedback on this lake would be awesome! Thanks!! Erik
Erik…the Pete is a very large body of water, and holds lots of fish, but getting started from scratch can be tough. It can also get pretty rough out there from winds coming out of about any direction, so that becomes another factor in deciding where to start. But with that said, your first decision is whether to fish the river section from Nekoosa and down to the head of the lake, or the lake section from the head to the Petenwell dam. Not sure where exactly you’re staying, but there’s a very good launch at the county park on the east side of the lake, near Monroe Center, that gets you to some good waters near-by. One good tactic is to fish the break along the east shore, south of the county park. there’s a line of bouys that generally follows just off the break once you get south of the park. Working various depths by trolling, dragging, or vertical jigging will easily give you a full day of fishing. Start in about 6 to 8 fow, and work deeper till you find a pattern. Yesterday, a group of guys got a 3 man limit trolling this shallow depth range…I fished the river section, but it was slow there…a couple legals and some dinks. Figures 
I cannot overemphasize how treacherous this body of water can be to safe navigating. There are numerous stump fields and shallows that do not meet the eye, so be very careful out there. Get a good map to get oriented with some of the hazards. Follow the buoy line when you’re cruising, and if you venture off that path, keep a close eye on the depthfinder, and hand on the throttle, till you learn some safe routes…and even then be watchful. This is a flowage, and there are still some tree trunks sticking just out of or just below the water line, in 20 fow…something most people wouldnt expect to see.
good luck.
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