Fishing Littlefield Lake

Littlefield Lake offers excellent largemouth bass fishing with fish growing 0.9 inches above state average and 59% of the catch over the 14-inch minimum size limit. The 183-acre lake stratifies with good dissolved oxygen to 34 feet, creating two-story fishing opportunities. Bass average 15 inches and range up to 19 inches, holding around drop-offs, docks, and aquatic vegetation in the narrow littoral zone. The lake has steep drop-offs and deep holes ranging 30-60 feet, with sand and marl substrate mixed with some gravel. Walleye are present with some natural reproduction evident - older fish ages 9-12 don't align with stocking years, though 60% are over the 15-inch limit averaging nearly 20 inches. Northern pike are less common with only one of three fish over 24 inches. Bluegill fishing is challenging with only 5% over 6 inches, though the population shows stable recruitment across multiple year classes. The forage base is excellent with bluntnose minnow (31% of catch) and spotfin shiner (25% of catch) providing ample food for predators. Chara dominates the sparse vegetation community with white water lily in shallow areas, while Eurasian watermilfoil is present but not problematic. The thermocline establishes at 17-18 feet with hypoxic conditions below 34 feet, so fish cold-water species like any remaining trout in the depths during summer. This lake transitioned from failed trout management in the 1980s-90s to successful warmwater fishing, with the rainbow smelt population that once supported trout crashing in the mid-1990s due to beaver activity blocking spawning habitat.