Eel Lake Depth Map & Fishing Spots (OR)

Hatch outlook

Callibaetis (Speckled Dun)Active window

Typical here: Aug 15 – Sep 15 · the smaller fall brood

nymphthe hours before the midday emergence — nymphs rise off the weed tops in a vertical zigzag that can take hours — sources split between slow 2–4 inch strips with long pauses and a quicker steady retrieve; carry both speeds
dunmidday, roughly 11am into early afternoon
spinnermid-to-late-morning falls

Trout browse the weed-bed edges knocking nymphs loose, then cruise the flats sipping duns at midday — the marquee western lake mayfly.

The midday emergence puts cruisers over weed flats in under 20 ft: a casting bubble with a #14 Callibaetis nymph retrieved dead-slow with pauses is the honest match. Between hatch hours, small spoons and #1 inline spinners along the weed edges and drop-offs pick off the same fish.

The event happens over weed flats and weed-bed edges in 20 ft of water or less

Chironomids (stillwater midges)Active window

Typical here: May 1 – Oct 31

nymphearly morning, start of the day — fish the bloodworm ON the bottom — 4–6 inches off the mud before the emergence starts
pupathe cool morning hours are prime — as the emergence builds, slide the pupa up to 12–15 inches off bottom under the indicator; a little wind chop does the jigging

Concentrates by DEPTH BAND and mud type, not a fixed spot: roughly 20–25 ft in spring, deeper midsummer, in against the feeder creeks in summer heat, 5–25 ft in fall. Match the band.

This one translates almost perfectly: a slip float with a 1/64–1/100 oz midge-pattern jig set 4–15 inches off bottom over a mud flat, dead-sticked with the chop doing the work. Depth control is everything — no moving lure imitates a hanging pupa; the float rig IS the technique.

The event happens over open mud flats alongside weedlines, channels and basin edges; feeder-creek mouths in summer heat

Water boatman fall flightsActive window

Typical here: Aug 25 – Oct 10 · peaks on crisp, bright fall days after the first cold snap

adultmiddday-ish on calm, sunny fall days — the fishable moment is the splashdown: boatmen dive in headfirst trailing an air bubble and make repeated trips back to the surface — a fly or lure that dives nose-first on the drop imitates exactly this

Takes are seldom subtle — trout ravage boatmen as they hit the water and during their subsurface runs.

Tailor-made for hardware: a small 1/16 oz silver-bellied spoon or jig cast AT the rings of a splashdown sinks headfirst exactly like the natural — twitch-pause it back through the top few feet. On flight days fan-cast the shallow weed margins.

The event happens over near-shore shallows, weed beds and shoal margins on calm sunny fall afternoons

Grasshoppers (east-side summer)Active window

Typical here: Jun 15 – Sep 30

adultall day in high summer, best when afternoon wind knocks bugs onto the water

Pulls fish to the windward grassy banks and edges for months — fish the bank the wind blows ONTO.

The friendliest crossover of the summer: on lakes, drift the windward bank with a bubble-and-foam-hopper — the bubble's splash doesn't hurt a hopper presentation. On rivers, the same rig dead-drifted along the undercut grass banks, or small gold spinners under the banks between rises.

The event happens over grassy banks, undercut edges and windward shorelines

Next on this water

Damselfly migration · forageMay 15 – Jul 31 · in ~9 months

Recommendations come from depth structure and seasonal species behavior. Treat them as a starting point, not a guarantee. Contours here are interpolated from real agency depth surveys (state DNR / USACE). Never use for navigation. Always check local regulations.

Loading depth chart…

Recent catches at Eel Lake

Shared by DepthScout anglers. Exact spots stay private, always.

No shared catches here yet — be the first.Log a catch from the map above and share it to put Eel Lake on the board.

Fishing Eel Lake: what the data says

378-acre lake near Lakeside. The lake tops out around 60 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's the year, species by species, as the scoring engine sees it.

The drawn water covers 407 acres wrapped in 12.5 miles of bank. With a shoreline index of 4.4, this water is all arms and coves — edge habitat well beyond its acreage. Littoral water — the productive band under ~15 ft — makes up 19% of this chart. Tip to tip the water measures near 2.2 mi with a 1.2-mi widest point. Douglas County claims this one. Lake Edna sits 1 mi northwest — the closest neighbouring chart.

Rainbow Trout fishing at Eel Lake

Spring rainbow trout on Eel Lake hold shallow, usually 5 to 20 ft. They move out to 8 to 30 ft in summer and finish the year down in 8 to 40 ft. Put Break off the point first on the milk run — a drop-off near 21 ft that grades prime for winter. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a dodger + spoon (deep troll) or a flutter spoon.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	5 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Break off the point (21 ft)	Inline spinner (silver), Small spoon
Summer	8 to 30 ft	dawn & dusk	Break off the point (21 ft)	Dodger + spoon (deep troll), Flutter spoon
Fall	10 to 35 ft	dawn & dusk	Secondary point (26 ft)	Casting spoon, Jerkbait over shoals
Winter	8 to 40 ft	dawn	Break off the point (21 ft)	Jigging spoon, Tube jig (white)

Largemouth Bass fishing at Eel Lake

Come spring, look for largemouth bass tight to the bank in 2 to 10 ft. Expect a summer slide to 8 to 20 ft, then a winter hold in 15 to 35 ft. Start at Break off the point. It's a drop-off holding about 21 ft of water and rates prime come winter. Prime time lands in early morning and the evening. A texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait is the honest summer answer here.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	2 to 10 ft	dawn & dusk	Shallow bay flat (3 ft)	Spinnerbait, Chatterbait
Summer	8 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Break off the point (21 ft)	Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait
Fall	4 to 15 ft	midday & dawn	Back-bay flat (13 ft)	Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait
Winter	15 to 35 ft	midday	Break off the point (21 ft)	Blade bait, Jigging spoon

Crappie fishing at Eel Lake

When the water first warms, crappie slide up into 2 to 8 ft. By summer they slide out to 10 to 25 ft, and by winter most fish are in 15 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a feeding flat around 3 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Keep a jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) rigged through the warm months.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	2 to 8 ft	midday & dawn	Shallow bay flat (3 ft)	1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub
Summer	10 to 25 ft	dawn & dusk	Break off the point (21 ft)	Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled)
Fall	8 to 20 ft	dawn	Break off the point (21 ft)	Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2")
Winter	15 to 35 ft	midday	Break off the point (21 ft)	Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon

Bluegill fishing at Eel Lake

Come spring, look for bluegill tight to the bank in 1 to 6 ft. They move out to 4 to 15 ft in summer and finish the year down in 10 to 25 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a feeding flat around 3 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. A small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig is the honest summer answer here.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	1 to 6 ft	midday & dusk	Shallow bay flat (3 ft)	1/32 oz jig + micro plastic, Tiny popper (evenings)
Summer	4 to 15 ft	dawn & dusk	Back-bay flat (13 ft)	Small sponge spider (fly), Micro tube jig
Fall	6 to 18 ft	midday	Back-bay flat (13 ft)	Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped
Winter	10 to 25 ft	midday	Back-bay flat (13 ft)	Tungsten ice jig + plastic, Tiny spoon

Notable structure

Eel Lake carries 7 mapped structure features, topping out (or rather bottoming out) at Deep basin, about 60 ft down.

Deep basin: deep basin, around 60 ft
Secondary point: point, around 26 ft
Break off the point: drop-off, around 21 ft
Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 19 ft
Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 17 ft
Back-bay flat: feeding flat, around 13 ft
Shallow bay flat: feeding flat, around 3 ft

Public access & boat ramps

William Tugman State Park — ramp

Access data: Oregon State Marine Board — Boating Access. Confirm conditions and fees locally before you launch.

Eel Lake fishing regulations

Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Oregon waters are set by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife — and special regulations can apply to Eel Lake specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.

Check the official Oregon fishing regulations →

Common questions

How deep is Eel Lake?

Eel Lake is about 60 ft (18 m) deep 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 Eel Lake?

Anglers target rainbow trout, largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill on Eel Lake.

Where is the best fishing spot on Eel Lake?

Break off the point is the top-rated area: a drop-off in about 21 ft of water that rates prime for largemouth bass in winter. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.

When is the best time to fish Eel 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.

What are the fishing regulations for Eel Lake?

Fishing on Eel Lake is regulated by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Check the official Oregon regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.

Nearby waters

Lake Edna 1 mi · Loon Lake 17 mi · Cleawox Lake 23 mi · Siuslaw River 27 mi · Clear Lake 28 mi · Floras Lake 53 mi · Yaquina River 69 mi · Rogue River 85 mi · McKenzie River 98 mi · Cougar Reservoir 102 mi · Waldo Lake 107 mi · Torrey Lake 108 mi

See how Eel Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Oregon · best crappie lakes in Oregon · best rainbow trout lakes in Oregon

Browse all Oregon 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.