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Fishing Lake Whitney: what the data says
23,560-acre reservoir near Whitney. The lake tops out around 100 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.
Striped Bass fishing at Lake Whitney
In spring, striped bass run shallow here, mostly 5 to 20 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 25 to 60 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 50 ft. Deepest basin is the standout, a deep basin at roughly 60 ft, rated prime for summer striped bass. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Tie on a flutter spoon (deep) or a umbrella rig (trolled) and you're in the game.
| 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 Whitney
Spring white bass on Lake Whitney hold shallow, usually 2 to 12 ft. By summer they slide out to 8 to 25 ft, and by winter most fish are in 15 to 40 ft. Steele Creek inflow is the standout, a inflow / creek mouth at roughly 4 ft, rated prime for spring white bass. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 2 to 12 ft | dawn & dusk | see map |
| Summer | 8 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | see map |
| Fall | 6 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | see map |
| Winter | 15 to 40 ft | midday | see map |
Largemouth Bass fishing at Lake Whitney
In spring, largemouth bass run shallow here, mostly 2 to 10 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 8 to 20 ft, and winter fish settle into 15 to 35 ft. Shallow bay flat is the standout, a weed flat at roughly 7 ft, rated prime for spring largemouth bass. Best bite is 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 |
Smallmouth Bass fishing at Lake Whitney
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 |
Crappie fishing at Lake Whitney
Spring crappie on Lake Whitney hold shallow, usually 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 weed flat around 7 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a jig trolled/spider-rigged or a small crankbait (trolled) gets it done.
| 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 Whitney
In spring, channel catfish run shallow here, mostly 3 to 12 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 8 to 25 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 40 ft. Steele Creek inflow is the standout, a inflow / creek mouth at roughly 4 ft, rated prime for spring channel catfish. Best bite is 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 |
Lake Whitney also holds blue catfish (10 to 40 ft in summer), flathead catfish (8 to 30 ft in summer), freshwater drum (8 to 30 ft in summer), common carp (3 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 81 ft
- Deepest basin: deep basin, around 60 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 52 ft
- Brazos River inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 47 ft
- Old creek channel: creek channel, around 47 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 38 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 36 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 33 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 32 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 24 ft
- Marina / dock area: dock line, around 22 ft
- Weed flat: weed flat, around 22 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 19 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 18 ft
Common questions
How deep is Lake Whitney?
Lake Whitney is about 100 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 Whitney?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, white bass, crappie, channel catfish, striped bass, flathead catfish, blue catfish, freshwater drum, common carp on Lake Whitney.
Where is the best fishing spot on Lake Whitney?
Deepest basin is the top-rated area: a deep basin in about 60 ft of water that rates prime for striped bass in summer. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
When is the best time to fish Lake Whitney?
For striped 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
Belton Lake · Stillhouse Hollow Lake · Brazos River (John Graves Reach) · Richland-Chambers Reservoir · Lewisville Lake · Lake Ray Hubbard
See how Lake Whitney stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Texas · best smallmouth bass lakes in Texas · best white bass lakes in Texas · best crappie lakes in Texas
Browse all Texas fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.