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Fishing Placid Lake: what the data says
1,200-acre lake near Seeley Lake. The lake tops out around 93 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.
Kokanee fishing at Placid Lake
Spring kokanee on Placid Lake hold shallow, usually 10 to 30 ft. Summer pushes them deeper, 30 to 70 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 80 ft. The spot to know is Deep basin, a deep basin in about 93 ft of water that rates prime for kokanee in winter. Best bite is early morning. Summer baits: a dodger + pink/orange squid on downrigger or a kokanee bug + corn gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 10 to 30 ft | dawn | Small dodger + squid (pink), Wedding-ring spinner + corn |
| Summer | 30 to 70 ft | dawn | Dodger + pink/orange squid on downrigger, Kokanee bug + corn |
| Fall | 5 to 40 ft | dawn | Dodger + squid (deeper red/purple), Small spoon |
| Winter | 20 to 80 ft | dawn | Small glow jig + corn or maggot, Tiny spoon |
Lake Whitefish fishing at Placid Lake
Start shallow in spring: lake whitefish sit in 15 to 45 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 40 to 90 ft, and winter fish settle into 25 to 70 ft. The spot to know is Deep basin, a deep basin in about 93 ft of water that rates prime for lake whitefish in summer. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning. Tie on a blade bait vertical or a small jigging spoon and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 15 to 45 ft | midday & dawn | Small jig + waxworm, Blade bait (small) |
| Summer | 40 to 90 ft | dawn | Blade bait vertical, Small jigging spoon |
| Fall | 8 to 30 ft | dusk | Small spoon (gold), Jig + plastic larva |
| Winter | 25 to 70 ft | midday & dawn | Jigging spoon + bead chain, Tungsten jig + waxie |
Largemouth Bass fishing at Placid Lake
Spring largemouth bass on Placid 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. The spot to know is Shallow bay flat, a weed flat in about 5 ft of water that rates prime for largemouth bass in spring. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. 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 |
Yellow Perch fishing at Placid Lake
Start shallow in spring: yellow perch sit in 3 to 12 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 10 to 30 ft, and winter fish settle into 15 to 35 ft. The spot to know is Shallow bay flat, a weed flat in about 5 ft of water that rates prime for yellow perch in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in early morning. Tie on a drop-shot micro plastics or a small spoon tipped with worm and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 12 ft | midday & dawn | Small jig + curly tail, Perch-pattern micro crank |
| Summer | 10 to 30 ft | dawn | Drop-shot micro plastics, Small spoon tipped with worm |
| Fall | 12 to 35 ft | midday | Jigging spoon (small), Perch rig / spreader |
| Winter | 15 to 35 ft | midday & dawn | Tungsten jig + spikes, Rattle spoon (small) |
Brown Trout fishing at Placid Lake
Start shallow in spring: brown trout sit in 3 to 25 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 25 to 60 ft, and winter fish settle into 5 to 35 ft. The spot to know is Main-lake point, a point in about 14 ft of water that rates prime for brown trout in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in after dark and early morning. Tie on a spoon at the thermocline or a deep stickbait (night) and you're in the game.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Stickbait off planer boards (shallow), Small spoon along mud lines |
| Summer | 25 to 60 ft | night & dawn | Spoon at the thermocline, Deep stickbait (night) |
| Fall | 5 to 30 ft | dusk & dawn | Jerkbait over gravel, Casting spoon |
| Winter | 5 to 35 ft | dawn | Jigging spoon, Small stickbait (slow) |
Cutthroat Trout fishing at Placid Lake
Spring cutthroat trout on Placid Lake hold shallow, usually 3 to 15 ft. They move out to 10 to 35 ft in summer and finish the year down in 10 to 40 ft. The spot to know is Main-lake point, a point in about 14 ft of water that rates prime for cutthroat trout in fall. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. Summer baits: a trolled spoon (small) or a inline spinner gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 3 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | Inline spinner (silver/gold), Small spoon |
| Summer | 10 to 35 ft | dawn & dusk | Trolled spoon (small), Inline spinner |
| Fall | 5 to 25 ft | dawn & dusk | Casting spoon, Inline spinner |
| Winter | 10 to 40 ft | dawn | Small jigging spoon, Marabou jig |
Placid Lake also holds pumpkinseed (2 to 10 ft in summer), rainbow trout (8 to 30 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 93 ft
- Break off the point: drop-off, around 90 ft
- Shallow feeding flat: feeding flat, around 24 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 14 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 7 ft
- Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 5 ft
- Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 5 ft
Common questions
How deep is Placid Lake?
Placid Lake is about 93 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 Placid Lake?
Anglers target largemouth bass, rainbow trout, yellow perch, brown trout, kokanee, lake whitefish, cutthroat trout, pumpkinseed on Placid Lake.
Where is the best fishing spot on Placid Lake?
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 Placid Lake?
For kokanee, the summer bite is best in early morning. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Nearby waters
Tuppers Lake · Seeley Lake · Salmon Lake · Lake Inez · Harpers Lake · Cottonwood Lake, Middle
See how Placid Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Montana · best rainbow trout lakes in Montana · best yellow perch lakes in Montana · best brown trout lakes in Montana
Browse all Montana fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.