Rat Lake Fishing Guide, Cherry County, Nebraska

• Overview

  Within Cherry County, Nebraska, you have Rat Lake. It sits at 2,720 feet above sea level. At about 191 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. About 2.3 miles of bank, so nothing stays unexplored for long. Supplies mean a trip to Ainsworth, 23 miles off. Valentine is 47 miles away, with Atkinson at 61 miles. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Rat Lake

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Public occurrence data for Cherry County names white sucker, common carp, green sunfish, rock bass and redfin pickerel. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. On Rat Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 74°F on average, January about 22°F. Seasons are distinct, and each one fishes differently. Ice-out usually falls in late March, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Going by climate averages, expect open water from about late March until roughly early December. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Anyone fishing Rat Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Access points are not mapped for this water, which suits people who like quiet. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Long Lake sits 1.3 miles off and takes the overflow. For Rat Lake in particular, ask before you travel.