Fishing Culbertson Lake in Nevada County, California

• Overview

  Within Nevada County, California, you have Culbertson Lake. The surface lies 6,453 feet up. At about 71 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. A plain outline means the drop-off does the work that bays would elsewhere. The closest town, Nevada City, is 24 miles away. Truckee is 24 miles away, with Grass Valley at 27 miles. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Culbertson Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Inflow corners move water, and moving water gathers fish. Levels move with the draw rather than the rain on water like this. Open biodiversity records for Nevada County list brook trout, rainbow trout and tahoe sucker. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Fish Culbertson Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect August to average close to 63°F, with January the cold end at about 33°F. Seasons here are moderate, and the fishing runs most of the year. In a normal year the cover is thin and short-lived. June to September is hot work, so the first and last hours are what count. Expect Culbertson Lake to follow that timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. You can camp about half a mile away, going by the mapping. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Failing this one, try Penner Lake, 0.4 miles away. Nothing on Culbertson Lake should be assumed from this page alone.