Fishing at Cedar Lake, Madison County, Iowa

• Overview

  Cedar Lake is one of the Madison County listings for Iowa. It sits in mixed forest. Surface area is around 83 acres, which gives you real water without needing a boat. With about 2.3 miles of edge, you can try several depths in one session. Some 2.8 miles away sits Winterset, the nearest settlement. Des Moines sits 25 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on Cedar Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Look for where the old bank line still shows under the surface. Standing timber shows when the level drops, and fish sit against it. Madison County records list black bullhead, yellow bass, channel catfish, common carp and gizzard shad among the fish reported. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. On Cedar Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 75°F and January at 20°F. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around mid March. Expect the water usable from around mid March until roughly mid December. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. Cedar Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. The car has to stay half a mile away, which shapes how much tackle you bring. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. For a change of water, Dale Maffitt Reservoir is 15 miles distant. Confirm access to Cedar Lake locally before you travel.