Fishing at Scout Lake, Wayne County, Indiana

• Overview

  The Wayne County entry here is Scout Lake, in Indiana. The water sits 991 feet up. Small at around 11 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. Most waters listed here for Wayne County are larger. The nearest town is Hagerstown, 0.9 miles away. Cambridge City lies 5.9 miles off, Centerville another 10 miles. The boundary is near enough that local access rules are worth double-checking.

• Where to Fish on Scout Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Records held for Wayne County cover rainbow darter, johnny darter, smallmouth bass and greenside darter. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. On Scout Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 73°F; the cold one sits at 25°F. The year runs cold to warm and back, with clear transitions. The lid usually goes in mid March, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. From about mid March to around late December, expect open water on the long-run figures. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. That is the shape of the year on Scout Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. Part of this sits inside or beside Steve Swoveland Nature Preserve, so read the notices. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. State or provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. For a change of water, We-Hi Lake is 6.3 miles distant. For Scout Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.