Musky Lakes in Minnesota, Wisconsin & Michigan

Other SpeciesFound in 410 lakes

Rough fish like Musky are often associated with eutrophic, nutrient-loaded waters. Their presence — documented in 410 Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan lakes — is often a signal of how the rest of the fishery is functioning. Musky is moderately distributed — 410 lakes in Wisconsin. Some counties have it, others do not, so checking the per-lake pages matters.

Rough-fish-dominant lakes are worth checking the grade on: a rough-fish-heavy fishery often reflects an underlying nutrient-loading problem in the watershed. Cross-reference the Musky lake list below against the LakeGrade rubric: lakes with both an A or B grade and Musky documented are the best places to start for recreational targeting.

410

Total Lakes

410

Wisconsin lakes →

Avg. Grade

37 ft

Avg. Depth

Water Quality of Musky Lakes

130

32%

104

25%

22%

14%

Best Musky Lakes by Water Quality

Top 50 lakes with musky ranked by overall water quality grade.

Rank	Lake	County	State	Grade	Depth	Species
1	Beasley Lake	Waupaca	WI	A	47 ft	6
2	White Sand Lake Deep	Vilas	WI	A	63 ft	6
3	Round Lake	Sawyer	WI	A	74 ft	6
4	Round Lake	Waupaca	WI	A	67 ft	8
5	Clear Lake	Sawyer	WI	A	32 ft	4
6	Clear Lake	Oneida	WI	A	95 ft	6
7	Razorback Lake	Vilas	WI	A	35 ft	6
8	Little Spider Lake	Vilas	WI	A	23 ft	5
9	Archibald Lake	Oconto	WI	A	50 ft	4
10	Papoose Lake	Vilas	WI	A	65 ft	6
11	Deer Lake	Polk	WI	A	46 ft	5
12	Eagle Lake	Bayfield	WI	A	52 ft	6
13	Big Lake	Vilas	WI	A	30 ft	6
14	Boot Lake	Oconto	WI	A	38 ft	5
15	Upper Kaubashine Lake	Oneida	WI	A	56 ft	6
16	Plummer Lake	Vilas	WI	A	85 ft	5
17	Big Crawling Stone Deep Lake	Vilas	WI	A	87 ft	6
18	Shell Lake	Washburn	WI	A	36 ft	6
19	Alva Lake	Oneida	WI	A	43 ft	5
20	Franklin Lake	Oneida	WI	A	25 ft	5
21	Sand Lake	Rusk	WI	A	100 ft	5
22	Mildred Lake	Oneida	WI	A	45 ft	4
23	White Birch Lake	Vilas	WI	A	27 ft	5
24	Upper Eau Claire Lake	Bayfield	WI	A	92 ft	6
25	Sunset Lake	Vilas	WI	A	30 ft	6
26	Hasbrook Lake	Oneida	WI	A	50 ft	5
27	Little Round Lake	Sawyer	WI	A	38 ft	6
28	Lower Eau Claire Lake	Bayfield	WI	A	41 ft	6
29	Osprey Lake	Sawyer	WI	A	32 ft	6
30	Presque Isle Lake	Vilas	WI	A	103 ft	6
31	Katinka Lake	Vilas	WI	A	60 ft	5
32	Crawling Stone Lake	Vilas	WI	A	87 ft	6
33	Little Crawling Stone Lake	Vilas	WI	A	44 ft	6
34	Grindstone Lake	Sawyer	WI	A	60 ft	6
35	Hart Lake	Bayfield	WI	A	54 ft	6
36	Clearwater Lake	Oneida	WI	A	48 ft	6
37	Long Interlaken Lake Deep	Vilas	WI	A	65 ft	6
38	Middle Eau Claire Lake	Bayfield	WI	A	66 ft	6
39	Little Trout Lake Deep	Vilas	WI	A	98 ft	6
40	Bolger Lake	Oneida	WI	A	45 ft	5
41	Harris Lake	Vilas	WI	A	57 ft	6
42	White Sand Lake	Vilas	WI	A	71 ft	6
43	White Sand Lake	Vilas	WI	A	63 ft	6
44	Upper Sugarbush Lake Deep	Vilas	WI	A	29 ft	6
45	Fence Lake Deep	Vilas	WI	A	86 ft	7
46	Lower Sugarbush Lake Deep	Vilas	WI	A	61 ft	6
47	Lake Placid	Sawyer	WI	A	30 ft	4
48	Middle Sugarbush Lake Deep	Vilas	WI	A	57 ft	6
49	Mercer Lake	Oneida	WI	A	23 ft	6
50	Fence Lake	Vilas	WI	A	86 ft	7

Showing top 50 of 410 lakes with musky.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many lakes have musky?

Musky are found in 410 graded lakes: 410 in Wisconsin. The average water quality grade of lakes with musky is C (Fair).

What are the best lakes for musky?

The best musky lakes by water quality are Beasley Lake, White Sand Lake Deep, Round Lake, Round Lake, Clear Lake. These lakes have the highest water quality grades among all lakes where musky have been documented by state DNR surveys.

What other fish are found with musky?

Musky are most commonly found alongside panfish, largemouth bass, walleye, northern pike, smallmouth bass. These species share similar habitat preferences in the region's lakes.

Other Fish Species in Musky Lakes

Panfish Lakes

Found together in 406 lakes · 1,148 total

Largemouth bass Lakes

Found together in 398 lakes · 172 total

Walleye Lakes

Found together in 380 lakes · 840 total

Northern pike Lakes

Found together in 352 lakes · 99 total

Smallmouth bass Lakes

Found together in 258 lakes · 117 total

Sturgeon Lakes

Found together in 29 lakes · 34 total

Source: EPA National Aquatic Resource Surveys, 2026.