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Fishing Clinton Lake: what the data says
7,205-acre reservoir near Lawrence. Lawrence's home lake, stocked with walleye, saugeye, and wipers. The lake tops out around 40 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. Here is how the season plays out for each species, straight from the data behind the map.
Largemouth Bass fishing at Clinton 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. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 8 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait gets it done.
| 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 |
Channel Catfish fishing at Clinton Lake
Start shallow in spring: channel catfish sit in 3 to 12 ft that time of year. By summer they slide out to 8 to 25 ft, and by winter most fish are in 20 to 40 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Creek inflow: a inflow / creek mouth around 3 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in after dark and the evening.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | dusk | |
| Summer | 8 to 25 ft | night & dusk | |
| Fall | 10 to 30 ft | dusk | |
| Winter | 20 to 40 ft | midday |
Crappie fishing at Clinton Lake
Start shallow in spring: crappie sit in 2 to 8 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 25 ft, and winter fish settle into 15 to 35 ft. The spot to know is Marina / dock area, a dock line in about 6 ft of water that rates prime for crappie in spring. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. A jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) covers the summer program.
| 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 |
Bluegill fishing at Clinton Lake
Spring bluegill on Clinton 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. Shallow bay flat is the standout, a weed flat at roughly 8 ft, rated prime for summer bluegill. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. A small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 to 6 ft | midday & dusk | 1/32 oz jig + micro plastic, Tiny popper (evenings) |
| Summer | 4 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | Small sponge spider (fly), Micro tube jig |
| Fall | 6 to 18 ft | midday | Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped |
| Winter | 10 to 25 ft | midday | Tungsten ice jig + plastic, Tiny spoon |
Walleye fishing at Clinton Lake
Spring walleye on Clinton Lake hold shallow, usually 4 to 15 ft. By summer they slide out to 15 to 35 ft, and by winter most fish are in 20 to 40 ft. Break off the point is the standout, a drop-off at roughly 20 ft, rated prime for fall walleye. Best bite is the evening and early morning. Summer baits: a crawler harness on bottom bouncer or a deep crankbait (trolled) gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 4 to 15 ft | dusk & dawn | 1/8 oz jig + minnow, Hair jig |
| Summer | 15 to 35 ft | dusk & dawn | Crawler harness on bottom bouncer, Deep crankbait (trolled) |
| Fall | 12 to 40 ft | dusk & night | Jigging rap, Jig + big minnow |
| Winter | 20 to 40 ft | dusk & dawn | Jigging spoon + minnow head, Rattle bait |
Saugeye fishing at Clinton Lake
Start shallow in spring: saugeye sit in 3 to 12 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 8 to 22 ft, and winter fish settle into 12 to 30 ft. The spot to know is Creek inflow, a inflow / creek mouth in about 3 ft of water that rates prime for saugeye in spring. Plan around the evening and early morning in the warm months. A crawler harness (shallow) or a jig + crawler covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | dusk & dawn | 1/8 oz jig + twister tail, Blade bait |
| Summer | 8 to 22 ft | dusk & dawn | Crawler harness (shallow), Jig + crawler |
| Fall | 8 to 28 ft | dusk & dawn | Blade bait, Jigging rap |
| Winter | 12 to 30 ft | dusk & dawn | Jigging spoon + minnow head, Blade bait |
Clinton Lake also holds sauger (10 to 30 ft in summer), smallmouth bass (10 to 30 ft in summer), white bass & hybrids (10 to 30 ft in summer), blue catfish (10 to 40 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 40 ft
- Break off the point: drop-off, around 20 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 20 ft
- Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 14 ft
- Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 8 ft
- Marina / dock area: dock line, around 6 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 5 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 5 ft
- Shoreline point: point, around 4 ft
- Creek inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 3 ft
- Wakarusa River inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 3 ft
- Rock reef: rock pile, around 3 ft
- Old creek channel: creek channel, around 2 ft
- Rock reef: rock pile, around 2 ft
Common questions
How deep is Clinton Lake?
Clinton Lake is about 40 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 Clinton Lake?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, saugeye, sauger, crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, white bass & hybrids, blue catfish on Clinton Lake.
Where is the best fishing spot on Clinton Lake?
Shallow bay flat is the top-rated area: a weed flat in about 8 ft of water that rates prime for largemouth bass in spring. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
When is the best time to fish Clinton Lake?
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.
Nearby waters
Kansas River · Lake Shawnee · Perry Lake · Pomona Lake · Hillsdale Lake · Melvern Lake
See how Clinton Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Kansas · best smallmouth bass lakes in Kansas · best walleye lakes in Kansas · best saugeye lakes in Kansas
Browse all Kansas fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.