Carnes Lake in Sheridan County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  You will find Carnes Lake in Sheridan County, Nebraska. What surrounds it is rolling bush. The water covers some 39 acres, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. The edge runs 1.1 miles or so, easy to work in an afternoon. It is high ground by Nebraska standards. The closest town, Alliance, is 33 miles away. Further out sit Gordon (42 miles) and Bridgeport (57 miles). The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Carnes Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Across Sheridan County, recorded fish include white sucker, brown trout, rock bass and yellow perch. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. Carnes Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 72°F in July and bottom out at 22°F in January. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. Ice-out usually falls in late March, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Ice usually gives way near late March, and forms again about early December. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. Time your trip to Carnes Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No made access appears within a short radius, so plan to park on a verge and walk. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Jennings Lake, 1 mile away, makes the obvious fallback. Treat Carnes Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.