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Fishing American Lake: what the data says
1,125-acre lake near Lakewood. The lake tops out around 90 ft. The depth chart is built from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the humps, channels and drop-offs you see are measured, not guessed. What follows comes from the same scoring engine that paints the spots above.
Rainbow Trout fishing at American Lake
Spring rainbow trout on American Lake hold shallow, usually 5 to 20 ft. By summer they slide out to 8 to 30 ft, and by winter most fish are in 8 to 40 ft. The spot to know is Break off the point, a drop-off in about 30 ft of water that rates prime for rainbow trout in winter. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a dodger + spoon (deep troll) or a flutter spoon gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Inline spinner (silver), Small spoon |
| Summer | 8 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Dodger + spoon (deep troll), Flutter spoon |
| Fall | 10 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Casting spoon, Jerkbait over shoals |
| Winter | 8 to 40 ft | dawn | Jigging spoon, Tube jig (white) |
Smallmouth Bass fishing at American Lake
Start shallow in spring: smallmouth bass sit in 3 to 12 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 30 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 45 ft. Main-lake point is the standout, a point at roughly 8 ft, rated prime for fall smallmouth bass. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. Summer baits: a drop shot (goby/minnow) or a ned rig gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | Ned rig, Tube jig |
| Summer | 10 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Drop shot (goby/minnow), Ned rig |
| Fall | 8 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Jerkbait, Blade bait |
| Winter | 20 to 45 ft | midday | Blade bait, Hair jig |
Largemouth Bass fishing at American Lake
Start shallow in spring: largemouth bass sit in 2 to 10 ft that time of year. By summer they slide out to 8 to 20 ft, and by winter most fish are in 15 to 35 ft. Shallow bay flat is the standout, a weed flat at roughly 8 ft, rated prime for spring largemouth bass. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Tie on a texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | Spinnerbait, Chatterbait |
| Summer | 8 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait |
| Fall | 4 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday | Blade bait, Jigging spoon |
Crappie fishing at American Lake
In spring, crappie run shallow here, mostly 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 10 to 25 ft in summer and finish the year down in 15 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 8 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 8 ft | midday & dawn | 1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub |
| Summer | 10 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 8 to 20 ft | dawn | Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2") |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday | Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon |
Yellow Perch fishing at American Lake
Spring yellow perch on American Lake hold shallow, usually 3 to 12 ft. By summer they slide out to 10 to 30 ft, and by winter most fish are in 15 to 35 ft. The spot to know is Shallow bay flat, a weed flat in about 8 ft of water that rates prime for yellow perch in spring. Best bite is early morning. A drop-shot micro plastics or a small spoon tipped with worm covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | midday & dawn | Small jig + curly tail, Perch-pattern micro crank |
| Summer | 10 to 30 ft | dawn | Drop-shot micro plastics, Small spoon tipped with worm |
| Fall | 12 to 35 ft | midday | Jigging spoon (small), Perch rig / spreader |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday & dawn | Tungsten jig + spikes, Rattle spoon (small) |
Kokanee fishing at American Lake
Start shallow in spring: kokanee sit in 10 to 30 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 30 to 70 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 80 ft. The spot to know is Deep basin, a deep basin in about 90 ft of water that rates prime for kokanee in winter. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning. Tie on a dodger + pink/orange squid on downrigger or a kokanee bug + corn and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 10 to 30 ft | dawn | Small dodger + squid (pink), Wedding-ring spinner + corn |
| Summer | 30 to 70 ft | dawn | Dodger + pink/orange squid on downrigger, Kokanee bug + corn |
| Fall | 5 to 40 ft | dawn | Dodger + squid (deeper red/purple), Small spoon |
| Winter | 20 to 80 ft | dawn | Small glow jig + corn or maggot, Tiny spoon |
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 90 ft
- Break off the point: drop-off, around 30 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 25 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 14 ft
- Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 13 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 10 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 8 ft
- Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 8 ft
Common questions
How deep is American Lake?
American Lake is about 90 ft at its deepest point. The depth chart here comes from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the contours reflect measured depths.
What fish are in American Lake?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, crappie, rainbow trout, yellow perch, kokanee on American Lake.
Where is the best fishing spot on American Lake?
Main-lake point is the top-rated area: a point in about 8 ft of water that rates prime for smallmouth bass in fall. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
When is the best time to fish American Lake?
For rainbow trout, the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Nearby waters
Lake Louise · Gravelly Lake · Steilacoom Lake · Spanaway Lake · Little Wapato Lake · Florence Lake
See how American Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Washington · best smallmouth bass lakes in Washington · best crappie lakes in Washington · best rainbow trout lakes in Washington
Browse all Washington fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.