Wheeler Lake in Platte County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  The Platte County end of Wyoming holds Wheeler Lake. The bank is 4,642 feet above sea level. It runs to roughly 34 acres — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. It lies lower than most water we list in Wyoming. Wheatland sits 9.6 miles from the bank. Fort Collins sits 105 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Wheeler Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Public occurrence data for Platte County names common carp, walleye, white sucker and channel catfish. The county list is broader than any single water. The shape of Wheeler Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages here run 72°F at the top of summer and 29°F at the bottom of winter. Some winters cap it and some do not. It is not guaranteed from one year to the next. June to September is hot work, so the first and last hours are what count. The season on Wheeler Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. Walleye come to jigs worked slow near bottom, and to trolled crankbaits along the drops at dusk. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. For a change of water, Attebury Reservoir is 1.3 miles distant. Check the current arrangement for Wheeler Lake.