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Fishing Lake Ouachita: what the data says
40,000-acre lake near Mountain Pine. Arkansas's largest lake. a deep, gin-clear Ouachita Mountains reservoir with islands, timber and a trophy striper and spotted-bass fishery. The lake tops out around 200 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. Below is the species-by-species picture, pulled from the same data the map uses.
Largemouth Bass fishing at Lake Ouachita
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. Shallow bay flat is the standout, a weed flat at roughly 6 ft, rated prime for spring largemouth bass. Best bite is 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 |
Spotted Bass fishing at Lake Ouachita
In spring, spotted bass run shallow here, mostly 5 to 20 ft. By summer they slide out to 15 to 40 ft, and by winter most fish are in 25 to 50 ft. Shoreline point is the standout, a point at roughly 10.337414237019505 ft, rated prime for spring spotted bass. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a drop shot over brush or a underspin + fluke (schoolers) gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 5 to 20 ft | dawn & dusk | Ned rig on gravel points, Shaky head |
| Summer | 15 to 40 ft | dawn & dusk | Drop shot over brush, Underspin + fluke (schoolers) |
| Fall | 10 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Walking topwater, Underspin |
| Winter | 25 to 50 ft | midday | Damiki/hover rig, Jigging spoon |
Smallmouth Bass fishing at Lake Ouachita
Start shallow in spring: smallmouth bass sit in 3 to 12 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 30 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 45 ft. Offshore hump is the standout, a offshore hump at roughly 28.323046373595204 ft, rated prime for summer smallmouth bass. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. Summer baits: a drop shot (goby/minnow) or a ned rig gets it done.
| 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 |
Striped Bass fishing at Lake Ouachita
Start shallow in spring: striped bass sit in 5 to 20 ft that time of year. They move out to 25 to 60 ft in summer and finish the year down in 20 to 50 ft. Irons Fork inflow is the standout, a inflow / creek mouth at roughly 8 ft, rated prime for spring striped bass. In summer the feeding windows fall in 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 |
White Bass fishing at Lake Ouachita
Start shallow in spring: white bass sit in 2 to 12 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 8 to 25 ft, and winter fish settle into 15 to 40 ft. The spot to know is Irons Fork inflow, a inflow / creek mouth in about 8 ft of water that rates prime for white bass in spring. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. A slab spoon or a small topwater (schooling fish) covers the summer program.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | Curly-tail jig (white), Small lipless crank |
| Summer | 8 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Slab spoon, Small topwater (schooling fish) |
| Fall | 6 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Jigging spoon, Blade bait |
| Winter | 15 to 40 ft | midday | Jigging spoon (deep), Blade bait |
Walleye fishing at Lake Ouachita
In spring, walleye run shallow here, mostly 4 to 15 ft. They move out to 15 to 35 ft in summer and finish the year down in 20 to 40 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Irons Fork inflow: a inflow / creek mouth around 8 ft that scores prime in spring. 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 |
Lake Ouachita also holds crappie (10 to 25 ft in summer), channel catfish (8 to 25 ft in summer), bluegill (4 to 15 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 170 ft
- Break off the point: drop-off, around 90 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 50 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 50 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 28.644638224581946 ft
- Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 28.323046373595204 ft
- Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 17.83370409085732 ft
- Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 16.82055501290936 ft
- Offshore hump: offshore hump, around 16.556745286897332 ft
- Dock / pier line: dock line, around 15 ft
- Dock / pier line: dock line, around 15 ft
- Shoreline point: point, around 10.337414237019505 ft
- Feeding flat: feeding flat, around 10 ft
- Irons Fork inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 8 ft
Common questions
How deep is Lake Ouachita?
Lake Ouachita is about 200 ft (61 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 Ouachita?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, white bass, crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, striped bass, spotted bass on Lake Ouachita.
Where is the best fishing spot on Lake Ouachita?
Shallow bay flat is the top-rated area: a weed flat in about 6 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 Ouachita?
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 Hamilton · Nimrod Lake · DeGray Lake · Lake Catherine · Lake Greeson · Blue Mountain Lake
See how Lake Ouachita stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Arkansas · best white bass lakes in Arkansas · best crappie lakes in Arkansas · best bluegill lakes in Arkansas
Browse all Arkansas fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.