Ned Rig Fishing on Torch Lake
Torch Lake · Michigan · Midwest
Torch Lake stretches roughly 19 miles through the northern Lower Peninsula, making it the longest inland lake in Michigan and one of the clearest in the entire Great Lakes region. The fishery is dominated by smallmouth bass holding on gravel and cobble shoals, submerged points, and hard-bottom transitions that drop quickly into 100-plus feet of water. Largemouth are present but sparse, concentrated in the shallower northern and southern bays where any available weedy cover exists.
Ned Rig pairs a 3–4" ElaZtech-style floating plastic (TRD, Finesse TRD, or similar) on a 1/15–1/6 oz mushroom head jig. The bait's buoyancy causes it to stand upright on the bottom, creating a subtle action that triggers bites when nothing else will. Exceptional on hard bottom, gravel, and rock.
Ned Rig Setup for Torch Lake
| Rod | 6'10"–7'2" medium-light spinning rod, moderate-fast action |
| Reel | 2500 size spinning reel |
| Line | 10 lb braid + 8 lb fluorocarbon leader |
| Weight | 1/15–1/6 oz mushroom jig head (Z-Man Finesse ShroomZ or similar) |
| Hook | Size 1 or 1/0 wide gap, built into jig head |
Seasonal Tactics on Torch Lake
Lake: Smallmouth stage on gravel shoals and rocky points in 8–18 ft as water temperatures climb through the 50s; pre-spawn fish are aggressive and stack on the same transitional structure year after year, particularly on the lake's eastern shoreline points. Tube jigs and drop shots fished slowly over clean bottom account for most fish before the mid-May spawn push.
Ned Rig: Deadly on pre-spawn fish holding on gravel and pea-gravel flats in 4–12 feet.
Lake: Post-spawn fish scatter to deeper hard-bottom structure and submerged points in 20–35 ft, suspending near the thermocline when surface temps crest 75°F in the shallows. Tube drags and football jigs on main-lake shoals produce, but mid-summer topwater action at dawn over shallow rocky flats can be exceptional before boat traffic builds.
Ned Rig: Work deeper rock piles and main lake points. Drag slowly, let it stand. Green pumpkin and watermelon dominate.
Lake: Cooling water pulls smallmouth back shallow through September and October, with fish actively chasing emerald shiners and perch fry on windward gravel points in 6–15 ft. Swimbaits and crankbaits covering water efficiently outproduce finesse rigs as the bite windows tighten toward mid-October.
Ned Rig: One of the best techniques as fish get finicky before winter. Match shad colors on sandy/gravel bottom.
Lake: Ice fishing for smallmouth is practiced in colder years when Torch Lake freezes sufficiently, though its size and depth mean reliable ice is inconsistent. Open-water anglers targeting late-November fish find them consolidated on the deepest accessible hard-bottom transitions, often in 40–55 ft, slow-dragging blade baits and finesse jigs.
Ned Rig: Best cold-water finesse technique after drop shot. Extremely slow drag on hard bottom near deep structure.
Best Conditions
Clear water, hard and rocky bottoms, post-cold-front, heavily pressured fish, any season except peak summer spawn
Use Z-Man ElaZtech plastics exclusively — they float and are nearly indestructible. Regular soft plastics sink and kill the technique.
More Techniques for Torch Lake
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