Neely Henry Lake Depth Map & Fishing Spots (AL)

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Lake depth chart

Neely Henry Lake, AL

Max 60 ft

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Where to start

Fall shad migration window is on — see the hatch outlook

Hatch outlook

Fall shad migrationActive window

Typical here: Sep 1 – Dec 15 · upper ends and stained creeks turn on first, the main lake follows; Deep-South creeks hold bait into December

adultall day, best mid-afternoon as the sun warms the bait — the rare pattern where you can sleep in — follow the bait, not the structure: gulls, herons and egrets diving or stacked in a creek mean the shad (and the bass) are there — run and gun until you find flickering bait or surface activity

Concentrates hard but unevenly — whole stretches go empty while one creek loads up. The birds are the map.

Creek-arm run-and-gun: lipless crankbait and squarebill through the flats and ditches, walking topwater over surface schools, a 3/8 oz spinnerbait around isolated cover along the creek channel. Downsize to match the young-of-year shad; jerkbaits are the sleeper.

The event happens over backs of creek arms, pockets and ditches, secondary points on the way in, and main-lake flats where the bait balls roam

Willow fly (summer mayfly)Active window

Typical here: Apr 1 – Oct 31 · recurring broods all summer — the heart of it is June–July, famously around July 4th on the Tennessee River lakes; any one hatch lasts days to ~3 weeks

dunhatches at dusk — clouds of bugs just before dark, continuing into the night — after hatching they fly to shoreline foliage — trees near lighted docks get covered; the feeding zone is the water under bug-loaded overhanging bushes and willows
spinnerthe following days: mating, egg drop and spent flies falling from the overhangs — the bream bite under the bushes runs as long as the bugs do

A two-level event: bream stack under the bug trees, and the big bass stack under the bream. Fish the same bushes twice — small for bream, big for the bass just outside them.

Crickets or small poppers under a float tight to the bug-covered bushes for bream; beetle spins and hair jigs just under the surface; for the bass, run a bluegill-pattern topwater or squarebill down the outside edge of the overhangs.

The event happens over under and just outside overhanging willows and bushes on steep banks; trees near lighted docks after dark

Next on this water

Spring crawfish emergence · forageFeb 15 – May 15 · in ~6 months

Shad spawn · baitfishMar 15 – Jun 15 · in ~6 months

Bluegill spawn (bream-bed bass) · forageMay 1 – Jul 31 · in ~8 months

Recommendations come from depth structure and seasonal species behavior. Treat them as a starting point, not a guarantee. Contours on this water are approximations. Never use for navigation. Always check local regulations.

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Recent catches at Neely Henry Lake

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

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Fishing Neely Henry Lake: what the data says

11,200-acre lake near Gadsden. A grassy upper-Coosa lake near Gadsden. Docks, milfoil and quality largemouth and spotted bass. The lake tops out around 60 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's the year, species by species, as the scoring engine sees it.

Neely Henry Lake's chart carries 88.7 miles of bank, broken up by 6 islands. A development index of 9.3 means a maze of bays and points: far more casting targets than a round bowl of the same size. 74% of the surface is littoral (under ~15 ft), per the model — cover, weeds and forage water. Figure 10 mi of water from one end to the other, 5.9 mi at the beam. It sits in St. Clair County. Logan Martin Lake sits 25 mi south — the closest neighbouring chart.

Largemouth Bass fishing at Neely Henry Lake

Spring largemouth bass on Neely Henry Lake hold shallow, usually 2 to 10 ft. They move out to 8 to 20 ft in summer and finish the year down in 15 to 35 ft. Put Shallow bay flat first on the milk run — a weed flat near 6 ft that grades prime for spring. The feeding windows run early morning and the evening. The summer box starts with a texas-rigged 10" worm or a deep-diving crankbait.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	2 to 10 ft	dawn & dusk	Shallow bay flat (6 ft)	Spinnerbait, Chatterbait
Summer	8 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Sharp break (12 ft)	Texas-rigged 10" worm, Deep-diving crankbait
Fall	4 to 15 ft	midday & dawn	Main-lake point (15 ft)	Squarebill crankbait (shad), Spinnerbait
Winter	15 to 35 ft	midday	Break off the point (27 ft)	Blade bait, Jigging spoon

Spotted Bass fishing at Neely Henry Lake

The spring pattern is a shallow one: spotted bass in 5 to 20 ft. As the season builds they drop to 15 to 40 ft, wintering in 25 to 50 ft. Top water on the chart: Main-lake point, a point in the 15 ft range, prime in spring. Time it for early morning and the evening. Summer baits: a drop shot over brush or an underspin + fluke (schoolers) gets it done.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	5 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (15 ft)	Ned rig on gravel points, Shaky head
Summer	15 to 40 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (15 ft)	Drop shot over brush, Underspin + fluke (schoolers)
Fall	10 to 30 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (15 ft)	Walking topwater, Underspin
Winter	25 to 50 ft	midday	Break off the point (27 ft)	Damiki/hover rig, Jigging spoon

Crappie fishing at Neely Henry Lake

Early season crappie use the shallows, holding in 2 to 8 ft. Summer is a 10 to 25 ft game here, winter a 15 to 35 ft one. The chart's best answer is Shallow bay flat — weed flat, 6 ft, prime for spring. Best bite is 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	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	2 to 8 ft	midday & dawn	Shallow bay flat (6 ft)	1/16 oz jig + tube, Curly-tail grub
Summer	10 to 25 ft	dawn & dusk	Marina / dock area (10 ft)	Jig trolled/spider-rigged, Small crankbait (trolled)
Fall	8 to 20 ft	dawn	Marina / dock area (10 ft)	Jig + minnow combo, Small swimbait (1.5-2")
Winter	15 to 35 ft	midday	Break off the point (27 ft)	Tungsten jig + soft plastic, Tiny jigging spoon

Channel Catfish fishing at Neely Henry Lake

Spring channel catfish on Neely Henry Lake hold shallow, usually 3 to 12 ft. They move out to 8 to 25 ft in summer and finish the year down in 20 to 40 ft. Put Break off the point first on the milk run — a drop-off near 27 ft that grades prime for fall. The feeding windows run after dark and the evening.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at
Spring	3 to 12 ft	dusk	Shallow bay flat (6 ft)
Summer	8 to 25 ft	night & dusk	Sharp break (12 ft)
Fall	10 to 30 ft	dusk	Break off the point (27 ft)
Winter	20 to 40 ft	midday	Break off the point (27 ft)

Striped Bass fishing at Neely Henry Lake

In spring, striped bass run shallow here, mostly 5 to 20 ft. Midsummer fish sit out in 25 to 60 ft before dropping to 20 to 50 ft for winter. Summer striped bass concentrate at Deep basin, a prime-rated deep basin around 51 ft. Fish it in early morning and the evening and you'll meet the bite. You won't need more than a topwater walker at low light or a paddletail on a light jig most summer days.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	5 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (15 ft)	3-5 inch baitfish swimbait, Suspending minnow plug
Summer	25 to 60 ft	dawn & dusk	Deep basin (51 ft)	Topwater walker at low light, Paddletail on a light jig
Fall	10 to 35 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (15 ft)	Baitfish swimbait, Metal jig
Winter	20 to 50 ft	midday	Deep basin (51 ft)	Slow paddletail, Bucktail near bottom

Bluegill fishing at Neely Henry Lake

Early season bluegill use the shallows, holding in 1 to 6 ft. Expect a summer slide to 4 to 15 ft, then a winter hold in 10 to 25 ft. Put Shallow bay flat first on the milk run — a weed flat near 6 ft that grades prime for 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	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	1 to 6 ft	midday & dusk	Shallow bay flat (6 ft)	1/32 oz jig + micro plastic, Tiny popper (evenings)
Summer	4 to 15 ft	dawn & dusk	Shallow bay flat (6 ft)	Small sponge spider (fly), Micro tube jig
Fall	6 to 18 ft	midday	Shallow bay flat (6 ft)	Micro jig + waxworm, Small spoon tipped
Winter	10 to 25 ft	midday	Sharp break (12 ft)	Tiny spoon

Notable structure

Neely Henry Lake carries 18 mapped structure features, topping out (or rather bottoming out) at Deep basin, about 51 ft down.

Deep basin: deep basin, around 51 ft
Break off the point: drop-off, around 27 ft
Main-lake point: point, around 15 ft
Secondary point: point, around 15 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 14 ft
Shoreline point: point, around 13 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 12 ft
Marina / dock area: dock line, around 10 ft
Shoreline point: point, around 7 ft
Shoreline point: point, around 7 ft
Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 6 ft
Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 6 ft
Sharp break: drop-off, around 3 ft
Rock reef: rock pile, around 3 ft

Neely Henry Lake fishing regulations

Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Alabama waters are set by the Alabama DCNR — and special regulations can apply to Neely Henry Lake specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.

Check the official Alabama fishing regulations →

Common questions

How deep is Neely Henry Lake?

Neely Henry Lake is about 60 ft (18 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 Neely Henry Lake?

Anglers target largemouth bass, spotted bass, crappie, channel catfish, striped bass, bluegill on Neely Henry Lake.

Where is the best fishing spot on Neely Henry Lake?

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 Neely Henry Lake?

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.

What are the fishing regulations for Neely Henry Lake?

Fishing on Neely Henry Lake is regulated by the Alabama DCNR. Check the official Alabama regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.

Nearby waters

Logan Martin Lake 25 mi · Weiss Lake 36 mi, AL/GA · Clay County Public Fishing Lakes 37 mi · Lake Wedowee 48 mi · Lay Lake 50 mi · DeKalb County Public Fishing Lake 53 mi · Lake Guntersville 57 mi, AL/TN · Sipsey Fork 57 mi · Lewis Smith Lake 62 mi · Walker County Public Fishing Lake 65 mi · Madison County Public Fishing Lake 69 mi · Mitchell Lake 70 mi

See how Neely Henry Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Alabama · best crappie lakes in Alabama · best bluegill lakes in Alabama · best channel catfish lakes in Alabama

Browse all Alabama fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. 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.