Sign inSign up free Sign inSign up free Sign inSign up freeShared by DepthScout anglers. Exact spots stay private, always.
374-acre lake near Centralia. Northeast Kansas county lake stocked with saugeye and wiper. The lake tops out around 26 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. Species by species, here's what the data says the year looks like.
The drawn water covers 395 acres wrapped in 8 miles of bank. That shoreline is heavily fingered (development index 2.9) — bays, points and pockets everywhere, which multiplies the fishable edge. Roughly 71% of the water is 15 ft or less, the band where the food chain lives. The basin spans about 1.5 mi end to end and 1.5 mi across at its widest. It sits in Nemaha County. Pottawatomie County State Fishing Lake No. 1 sits 21 mi southwest — the closest neighbouring chart.
Early season largemouth bass use the shallows, holding in 2 to 10 ft. Summer is an 8 to 20 ft game here, winter an 8 to 26 ft one. The chart's best answer is Shallow bay flat — weed flat, 10 ft, prime for spring. 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 | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 10 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (10 ft) | Spinnerbait, Chatterbait |
| Summer | 8 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (10 ft) | Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait |
| Fall | 4 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Main-lake point (5 ft) | Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait |
| Winter | 8 to 26 ft | midday | Break off the point (5 ft) | Blade bait, Jigging spoon |
Early season channel catfish use the shallows, holding in 3 to 12 ft. Summer is an 8 to 25 ft game here, winter an 8 to 26 ft one. The chart's best answer is Deep basin — deep basin, 26 ft, prime for winter. Best bite is after dark and the evening.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | dusk | Shallow bay flat (10 ft) | |
| Summer | 8 to 25 ft | night & dusk | Deep basin (26 ft) | |
| Fall | 8 to 26 ft | dusk | Deep basin (26 ft) | |
| Winter | 8 to 26 ft | midday | Deep basin (26 ft) |
Spring crappie on Centralia Lake hold shallow, usually 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 10 to 25 ft in summer and finish the year down in 8 to 26 ft. Put Deep basin first on the milk run — a deep basin near 26 ft that grades prime for winter. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled).
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 8 ft | midday & dawn | Back-bay flat (2 ft) | 1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub |
| Summer | 10 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (10 ft) | Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 8 to 20 ft | dawn | Shallow bay flat (10 ft) | Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2") |
| Winter | 8 to 26 ft | midday | Deep basin (26 ft) | Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon |
Spring bluegill on Centralia Lake hold shallow, usually 1 to 6 ft. By summer they slide out to 4 to 15 ft, and by winter most fish are in 10 to 25 ft. The chart's best answer is Back-bay flat — weed flat, 2 ft, prime for spring. Prime time lands in early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 6 ft | midday & dusk | Back-bay flat (2 ft) | 1/32 oz jig + micro plastic, Tiny popper (evenings) |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | Shallow bay flat (10 ft) | Small sponge spider (fly), Micro tube jig |
| Fall | 6 to 18 ft | midday | Shallow bay flat (10 ft) | Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped |
| Winter | 10 to 25 ft | midday | Deep basin (26 ft) | Tungsten ice jig + plastic, Tiny spoon |
Spring puts saugeye in skinny water — 3 to 12 ft is the zone. As the season builds they drop to 8 to 22 ft, wintering in 8 to 26 ft. Winter saugeye concentrate at Deep basin, a prime-rated deep basin around 26 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around the evening and early morning. A crawler harness (shallow) or a jig + crawler covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | dusk & dawn | Main-lake point (5 ft) | 1/8 oz jig + twister tail, Blade bait |
| Summer | 8 to 22 ft | dusk & dawn | Main-lake point (5 ft) | Crawler harness (shallow), Jig + crawler |
| Fall | 7 to 26 ft | dusk & dawn | Break off the point (5 ft) | Blade bait, Jigging rap |
| Winter | 8 to 26 ft | dusk & dawn | Deep basin (26 ft) | Jigging spoon + minnow head, Blade bait |
Spring white bass & hybrids on Centralia Lake hold shallow, usually 3 to 15 ft. They move out to 8 to 26 ft in summer and finish the year down in 8 to 26 ft. Put Deep basin first on the milk run — a deep basin near 26 ft that grades prime for winter. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a jigging spoon or a topwater (when schooling).
| Season | Depth | Best window | Start at | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Main-lake point (5 ft) | Rooster tail / inline spinner, Curly-tail jig (white/chartreuse) |
| Summer | 8 to 26 ft | dawn & dusk | Main-lake point (5 ft) | Jigging spoon, Topwater (when schooling) |
| Fall | 8 to 25 ft | midday & dawn | Main-lake point (5 ft) | Small blade bait, Jigging spoon |
| Winter | 8 to 26 ft | midday | Deep basin (26 ft) | Jigging spoon, Blade bait (vertical) |
Centralia Lake carries 6 mapped structure features, topping out (or rather bottoming out) at Deep basin, about 26 ft down.
Access data: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) — community-mapped launches. Confirm conditions and fees locally before you launch.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Kansas waters are set by the Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks — and special regulations can apply to Centralia Lake specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Kansas fishing regulations →
Centralia Lake is about 26 ft (8 m) deep at its deepest point. The depth chart here comes from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the contours reflect measured depths.
Anglers target largemouth bass, channel catfish, crappie, bluegill, saugeye, white bass & hybrids on Centralia Lake.
Shallow bay flat is the top-rated area: a weed flat in about 10 ft of water that rates prime for largemouth bass in spring. Scroll up to the map for the complete spot list by species and season.
For largemouth bass, 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.
Fishing on Centralia Lake is regulated by the Kansas Department of Wildlife & Parks. Check the official Kansas regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.
Pottawatomie County State Fishing Lake No. 1 21 mi · Iron Horse Trail Lake 24 mi, NE · Pony Creek Lake 26 mi · Banner Creek Lake 26 mi · Lake Burchard 33 mi, NE · Kirkmans Cove Lake 35 mi, NE · Wolf Wildcat Lake 37 mi, NE · Tuttle Creek Lake 37 mi · Atchison County Park Lake 37 mi · Big Indian Creek Reservoir 38 mi, NE · Verdon Lake 38 mi, NE · Rockford Lake 43 mi, NE
See how Centralia Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Kansas · best saugeye lakes in Kansas · best crappie lakes in Kansas · best bluegill lakes in Kansas
Browse all Kansas fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.