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Fishing Raystown Lake: what the data says
8,300-acre reservoir near Hesston. the largest lake entirely within Pennsylvania, a deep, clear USACE reservoir nationally known for landlocked striped bass and smallmouth. The lake tops out around 185 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. What follows comes from the same scoring engine that paints the spots above.
Striped Bass fishing at Raystown Lake
Start shallow in spring: striped bass sit in 5 to 20 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 25 to 60 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 50 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Creek inflow: a inflow / creek mouth around 8 ft that scores prime in spring. Plan around early morning and the evening in the warm months. 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 |
Smallmouth Bass fishing at Raystown Lake
Spring smallmouth bass on Raystown Lake hold shallow, usually 3 to 12 ft. They move out to 10 to 30 ft in summer and finish the year down in 20 to 45 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Rock reef: a rock pile around 4.3824898927379685 ft that scores prime in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in 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 Raystown Lake
In spring, largemouth bass run shallow here, mostly 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 6 ft of water that rates prime for largemouth bass 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 |
Lake Trout fishing at Raystown Lake
Spring lake trout on Raystown Lake hold shallow, usually 10 to 40 ft. By summer they slide out to 50 to 120 ft, and by winter most fish are in 20 to 80 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shoreline point: a point around 30.43718400531079 ft that scores prime in spring. Best bite is early morning. Summer baits: a white tube jig (deep) or a magnum spoon on downrigger gets it done.
| Season | Depth | Best window | Go-to baits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 10 to 40 ft | dawn & dusk | Casting spoon over shoals, Jerkbait (shallow) |
| Summer | 50 to 120 ft | dawn | White tube jig (deep), Magnum spoon on downrigger |
| Fall | 10 to 50 ft | dusk & dawn | Heavy casting spoon, Jigging rap over reefs |
| Winter | 20 to 80 ft | dawn | White tube jig, Airplane jig |
Walleye fishing at Raystown Lake
Start shallow in spring: walleye sit in 4 to 15 ft that time of year. Summer pushes them deeper, 15 to 35 ft, and winter fish settle into 20 to 40 ft. The spot to know is Creek inflow, a inflow / creek mouth in about 8 ft of water that rates prime for walleye in spring. In summer the feeding windows fall in the evening and early morning. Tie on a crawler harness on bottom bouncer or a deep crankbait (trolled) and you're in the game.
| 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 |
Crappie fishing at Raystown Lake
In spring, crappie run shallow here, mostly 2 to 8 ft. They move out to 10 to 25 ft in summer and finish the year down in 15 to 35 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Shallow bay flat: a weed flat around 6 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 |
Raystown Lake also holds channel catfish (8 to 25 ft in summer), muskellunge (8 to 25 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
Notable structure
- Deep basin: deep basin, around 157 ft
- Old creek channel: creek channel, around 93 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 51.03097182818979 ft
- Dock / pier line: dock line, around 50 ft
- Main-lake point: point, around 46 ft
- Secondary point: point, around 46 ft
- Sharp break: drop-off, around 39.82846824294772 ft
- Shoreline point: point, around 30.43718400531079 ft
- Dock / pier line: dock line, around 25 ft
- Dock / pier line: dock line, around 25 ft
- Dock / pier line: dock line, around 25 ft
- Creek inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 8 ft
- Creek inflow: inflow / creek mouth, around 8 ft
- Dock / pier line: dock line, around 8 ft
Common questions
How deep is Raystown Lake?
Raystown Lake is about 185 ft (56 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 Raystown Lake?
Anglers target largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleye, crappie, channel catfish, muskellunge, striped bass, lake trout on Raystown Lake.
Where is the best fishing spot on Raystown Lake?
Creek inflow is the top-rated area: a inflow / creek mouth in about 8 ft of water that rates prime for striped bass in spring. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.
When is the best time to fish Raystown Lake?
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
Juniata River · Susquehanna River · Lake Marburg · Youghiogheny River Lake · Youghiogheny River · Allegheny River
See how Raystown Lake stacks up: best largemouth bass lakes in Pennsylvania · best smallmouth bass lakes in Pennsylvania · best walleye lakes in Pennsylvania · best crappie lakes in Pennsylvania
Browse all Pennsylvania fishing maps or every water on DepthScout. How we build these maps. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.