Best saugeye lakes in Nebraska
18 Nebraska waters list saugeye (official records or labelled estimates), 18 mapped with survey or official-chart depth data. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality, leading with the waters in our reviewed search catalog — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. Walleye × sauger hybrid stocked across midwestern reservoirs. Loves stained water, wind-blown mud lines and dam riprap — bites better in daylight than a walleye.
- Crescent Lake — 16 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Saugeye, Northern PikeWhy #1: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Willow Creek Lake — 24 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass, SaugeyeWhy #2: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 3 public access sites
- Pawnee Lake — 21 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Saugeye, CrappieWhy #3: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 2 public access sites
- Cunningham Lake — 20 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, White Bass, Saugeye, CrappieWhy #4: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Blue Lake — 20 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, SaugeyeWhy #5: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
- Willow Lake — 10 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, Saugeye, CrappieWhy #6: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Standing Bear Lake — 20 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Northern Pike, CrappieWhy #7: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Rock Creek — 24 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass, SaugeyeWhy #8: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Olive Creek Lake — 12 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #9: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Iron Horse Trail Lake — 14 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #10: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Big Indian Creek Reservoir — 16 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #11: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Twin Lakes North — 5 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #12: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Swan Creek 5A — 16 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #13: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Hayes Center — 9 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Northern Pike, CrappieWhy #14: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
- Twin Lakes South — 4 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #15: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Meadowlark Lake — 16 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #16: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Wagon Train — 18 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Crappie, BluegillWhy #17: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
- Wellfleet Lake — 9 ft · Survey depth data · real survey depth contours · Largemouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass, SaugeyeWhy #18: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
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How to use this ranking
The order is a map-planning ranking, not a claim about today's fish population. It favors larger mapped waters and gives survey-backed contours a three-times data-quality boost. Agency population surveys, current regulations, access and recent conditions should make the final decision.
Compare maximum depth across 37,233 lake records · See Nebraska waters with public access data
When to fish saugeye in Nebraska
- Spring 3–12 ft — Stack below dams, on riprap and gravel shoals as water warms; muddy water is your friend.
- Summer 8–22 ft — Shallower than walleye all summer — fish the first breakline and wind-blown points.
- Fall 8–28 ft — Creek-channel edges and dam faces; the colder it gets, the better the daytime bite.
- Winter 12–30 ft — The premier winter bite in saugeye reservoirs — deep channel bends and tailwaters.
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Saugeye elsewhere: Ohio · Oklahoma · Colorado · Illinois · Kansas