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Fishing Lake Havasu: what the data says
19,300-acre reservoir near Lake Havasu City. Colorado River reservoir; clear-water smallmouth, largemouth and huge redear. The lake tops out around 105 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.
Smallmouth Bass fishing at Lake Havasu
In spring, smallmouth bass run shallow here, mostly 3 to 12 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 30 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 45 ft. Rock reef is the standout, a rock pile at roughly 4 ft, rated prime for spring smallmouth bass. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Tie on a drop shot (goby/minnow) or a ned rig and you're in the game.
| 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 Lake Havasu
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 4 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 |
Channel Catfish fishing at Lake Havasu
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 Havasupai Wash inflow: a inflow / creek mouth around 12 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 |
Bluegill fishing at Lake Havasu
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. The spot to know is Shallow bay flat, a weed flat in about 4 ft of water that rates prime for bluegill in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Tie on a small sponge spider (fly) or a micro tube jig and you're in the game.
| 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 |
Striped Bass fishing at Lake Havasu
Spring striped bass on Lake Havasu hold shallow, usually 5 to 20 ft. By summer they slide out to 25 to 60 ft, and by winter most fish are in 20 to 50 ft. Havasupai Wash inflow is the standout, a inflow / creek mouth at roughly 12 ft, rated prime for spring striped bass. Best bite is early morning and the evening. 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 | 25 to 60 ft | dawn & dusk | Flutter spoon (deep), Umbrella rig (trolled) |
| Fall | 10 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Topwater walker, Jerkbait |
| Winter | 20 to 50 ft | midday | Alabama rig (slow), Flutter spoon |
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 35 ft
- Deepest basin: deep basin, around 34 ft
- Old creek channel: creek channel, around 20 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 19 ft
- Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 17 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 16 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 16 ft
- Havasupai Wash inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 12 ft
- Willow Wash inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 11 ft
- Shallow flat: weed flat, around 9 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 4 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 4 ft
- Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 4 ft
- Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 4 ft
Common questions
How deep is Lake Havasu?
Lake Havasu is about 105 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 Lake Havasu?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish, striped bass on Lake Havasu.
Where is the best fishing spot on Lake Havasu?
Rock reef is the top-rated area: a rock pile in about 4 ft of water that rates prime for smallmouth 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 Havasu?
For smallmouth 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 Mohave · Alamo Lake · Lake Mead · Watson Lake · Redondo Lake · Lake Pleasant
See how Lake Havasu stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Arizona · best smallmouth bass lakes in Arizona · best bluegill lakes in Arizona · best channel catfish lakes in Arizona
Browse all Arizona fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.