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Fishing Lake Chesdin: what the data says
3,100-acre lake near Petersburg. an Appomattox River reservoir near Petersburg. flooded timber, grass and a solid largemouth, crappie and catfish fishery. The lake tops out around 40 ft. The contours are modeled from the water's real shoreline and maximum depth. Treat them as a rough guide, and never use them for navigation. Here is how the season plays out for each species, straight from the data behind the map.
Largemouth Bass fishing at Lake Chesdin
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 5 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. A texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait covers the summer program.
| 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 Lake Chesdin
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 Old creek channel: a creek channel around 20 ft that scores prime in fall. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Tie on a jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) and you're in the game.
| 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 |
Channel Catfish fishing at Lake Chesdin
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 Appomattox River inflow: a inflow / creek mouth around 4 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 |
Blue Catfish fishing at Lake Chesdin
Start shallow in spring: blue catfish sit in 5 to 25 ft that time of year. By summer they slide out to 10 to 40 ft, and by winter most fish are in 12 to 40 ft. Old creek channel is the standout, a creek channel at roughly 20 ft, rated prime for spring blue catfish. Best bite is early morning and the evening.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 25 ft | dusk | |
| Summer | 10 to 40 ft | dawn & dusk | |
| Fall | 12 to 40 ft | dusk | |
| Winter | 12 to 40 ft | midday |
Striped Bass fishing at Lake Chesdin
In spring, striped bass run shallow here, mostly 5 to 20 ft. They move out to 12 to 40 ft in summer and finish the year down in 12 to 40 ft. The spot to know is Deep basin, a deep basin in about 34 ft of water that rates prime for striped bass in summer. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. Summer baits: a flutter spoon (deep) or a umbrella rig (trolled) gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Bucktail jig + trailer, Walking topwater (dawn) |
| Summer | 12 to 40 ft | dawn & dusk | Flutter spoon (deep), Umbrella rig (trolled) |
| Fall | 10 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Topwater walker, Jerkbait |
| Winter | 12 to 40 ft | midday | Alabama rig (slow), Flutter spoon |
Bluegill fishing at Lake Chesdin
In spring, bluegill run shallow here, mostly 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 weed flat around 5 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig gets it done.
| 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 |
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 34 ft
- Old creek channel: creek channel, around 20 ft
- Break off the point: drop-off, around 18 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 10 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 10 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 9.973631673779758 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 9.831856004232263 ft
- Shoreline point: point, around 8.401214507904756 ft
- Shoreline point: point, around 6.6156099418116465 ft
- Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 5 ft
- Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 5 ft
- Weed flat: weed flat, around 4.632176664555446 ft
- Appomattox River inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 4 ft
- Namozine Creek inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 4 ft
Common questions
How deep is Lake Chesdin?
Lake Chesdin is about 40 ft (12 m) deep at its deepest point. The contours here are modeled from the water's real shape and maximum depth, so treat them as a rough guide.
What fish are in Lake Chesdin?
Anglers target largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, striped bass, blue catfish on Lake Chesdin.
Where is the best fishing spot on Lake Chesdin?
Shallow bay flat is the top-rated area: a weed flat in about 5 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 Lake Chesdin?
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
Lake Nottoway · James River · Lake Gordon · Lake Anna · Lake Gaston · Briery Creek Lake
See how Lake Chesdin stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Virginia · best crappie lakes in Virginia · best bluegill lakes in Virginia · best channel catfish lakes in Virginia
Browse all Virginia fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.