Because much of Nevada is made up of fairly rugged wilderness, it is not often considered a popular spot for bass fishing. But for those of us who call this Desert Paradise home, we know that once you understand how things work here, the desert can be a damn good place to fish.
Here are some of the best rivers, reservoirs, and lakes for bass fishing in Nevada.
Although mostly desert, Nevada is home to over 200 lakes and reservoirs and over 600 streams and rivers. Here are some of our favorite Nevada waters for perch hunting.
Lake Mead
Lake Mead – an artificial reservoir near Las Vegas; it’s also one of the best places in the state to find bass.
While the Lake is more known for its production of Stripers, if you know what you’re doing, this can be a great spot for large and small bass. In fact, the state record was caught in Lake Mead back in 1999. He weighed 12 pounds.
Ship Creek Reservoir
Popular with fly anglers for rainbows, cutthroats and tiger trout, Ship Creek Reservoir is also a great spot for small fish. Sheep Creek gets its water from the Wild Horse Reservoir, which has a pretty decent population of smallmouth bass that have managed to fish for trout.
Located in Ouihee, Nevada, the reservoir has held the smallmouth bass record since 2010, when an angler brought in an 8lb 11oz smallmouth bass. The Northern Paiute tribe considers this fish an invasive species, so the Duck Valley Indian Reservation is asking anglers not to return it to the water.
Lake Mojave
While it doesn’t get as much attention as its older sister, Lake Mead, down the Colorado River is one of the state’s most popular bass spots, Lake Mojave. The Mojave is a 64-mile-long reservoir that sits just behind the Davis Dam, southeast of Las Vegas. If you want to get away from the crowds in Mida, this is the place for you. He often produces larger fish, has more structure, and puts a lot less pressure on them compared to mid.
Commercial fish include minke whales, smallmouth, largemouth, rainbow trout, bluegill and channel catfish. The Mojave holds the record for the largest striped bass caught in the state, which was caught back in 2001 and weighed 63 pounds.
Colorado River
Nevada has two fishing spots on the Colorado River; between Hoover Dam and Mojave Lake and further south towards Laughlin.
If you’re looking to target minke whales, the north end of the water is probably your best bet, but if you’re looking for small and bucketmouths, you’ll need to head down to Laughlin. The southern part of Colorado, which transitions into California/Arizona, is where both large and smallmouth bass can be found.
Also read: Las Vegas Fishing: Floyd Lamb Park
Echo Canyon Reservoir
About 10 miles downstream from another major fishery, Eagle Valley Reservoir in Lincoln County, is one of the state’s best bass spots, Echo Canyon Reservoir. Echo Canyon is a 65-acre reservoir that is home to rainbow and brown trout, white crappie, largemouth bass, and black goby.
There aren’t many trophy-sized fish in the lake, but there are plenty of them, and you’ll likely have a day filled with some damn good fishing.
Wildhorse Reservoir
Wildhorse Reservoir is a popular fishing spot in northeastern Nevada. The man-made lake covers 2,830 acres and is home to rainbow, brown, onion and tiger trout; smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, channel catfish, wipers and yellow perch.
