| Species | Rating | Size | Baits, Method & Location |
| Crappie | Excellent | Up to 15 inches | Fishing jigs and minnows around the deeper brush. |
| Largemouth Bass | Good | Up to 5.5 lbs. | Casting soft plastics, suspending swimbaits and stick baits around laydown trees and overhanging brush along sun-warmed shore lines on warmer days. |
| Sunfish | Good | Up to 8 inches | Nightcrawler pieces vertically fished on a jig head or fished under a bobber around deeper brush. |
| Saugeye | Excellent | Up to 7 lbs. | Casting shad-imitating swimbaits along deeper, rip rapped shorelines or over areas possessing rapid depth changes to the bottom. |
| Trout | Good | 2/lb. average | The 2024/2025 trout season will run from December 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025. The first stocking of the season that consisted of approximately 1,000 trout was conducted 11-25-2024 with 2 stockings remaining for the season. Still fishing various baits such as power bait, worms, marshmallows, and corn, alone or in combination, is popular. Other anglers prefer presenting flys like prince, pheasant tail, and pistol pete nymphs using a fly rod or spin cast rod and casting bubble. |
| General Comments | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Since fishing reports are harder to come by in winter, the above report will be generic giving general locations and methods typically effective this time of year and won't be updated on a weekly basis unless the bite or ice changes dictate an update. ICE REPORT-As of 1-16-2025, The State Lake is nearly 100% ice covered except a hole on the main body of the lake kept open by waterfowl, and Barrel Springs Trout Pond is 95% ice covered. Ice on the State Lake is up to 4 inches thick and up to 1.5" inches thick on Barrel Springs. The ice on Barrel Springs is too thin to safely support ice fishing activity. Ice on the State Lake has undergone significant melting thus reducing ice strength making ice safety questionable. Any attempt to get out on the ice is discouraged. For some great ice fishing safety tips go to; https://www.takemefishing.org/ice-fishing/ice-fishing-basics/ice-fishing-safety/. Good luck and be safe out there! Release all saugeye less than 18 inches and largemouth bass less than 15 inches. Please discard of leftover bait in a trash can, even baitfish. Remember it is illegal to release any fish into public water unless it was taken from that water! | |||
