Mud Lake Fishing near Buchanan, Indiana

• Overview

  Mud Lake is listed under Saint Joseph County, Indiana. Height above sea level is 741 feet. At about 195 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. The outline measures near 3.3 miles, so local knowledge counts. Size puts it in the front rank of our Saint Joseph County list. Nearest town is Buchanan, 5.3 miles off. Further out sit Georgetown (7.7 miles) and New Carlisle (7.8 miles). Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Mud Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Survey and observation records for Saint Joseph County include bluegill, johnny darter, rainbow darter, rock bass and white sucker. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. Read Mud Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 72°F and January about 24°F. Winter shuts the surface down for months. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough mid March. Break-up near mid March, freeze-up near late December: that is the shape of an average year. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Mud Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Parking sits half a mile out, which makes for a walk with tackle. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. The nearest alternative is South Clear Lake, 0.5 miles out. Treat Mud Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.