Fishing Report For Rathbun Lake, IA

By Rick Seaman

March 4, 2025

Popular Fish Species Reports
Rathbun Lake Fishing Video
Available Fish Species
Today's Weather & Forecast
Marinas
Boat Launch Ramps
Fishing License
Map
Contact Info

Fishing Report Rathbun Lake, IA

Fishing Reports

Popular Fish Species Rathbun Lake, IA

Walleye

Current Report: Good
Outlook: Good To Very Good

Good electronics are benefiting anglers when walleye fishing at Rathbun Lake. The lake is loaded with walleye and they like to move around a lot to slow cruise flats and structure close to deep water. They primarily feed near to the bottom, so lures that drag on, or near the bottom work well. Jigs tipped with minnows or shad are catching lots of fish, as are worm harnesses. Jighead weights vary from 1/4 oz to 3/4 oz depending on depth and wind conditions. Late Spring through early Fall is the ideal time to be on the water. Local anglers are reporting spoons, deep-diving crankbaits, and worm harness spinners are also catching walleye while trolling.

Black Crappie

Uncle Buck's Panfish Creatures Curly Tail Minnow Rigged

Current Report: Good
Outlook: Good To Very Good

Crappie fishing has been steady in Rathbun Lake for a number of years now. From the Bridgeview Recreation Area west, and the coves around Honey Creek State Park tend to hold a lot of crappie. Spring is the premiere time to be on the water as crappie move into shallow coves to spawn. Lots of 14' crappie are caught here, as well as an occasional bragging size. Docks, brush, wood and deep vegetation are a good place to cast small crappie jigs or live minnows. Light tackle with 4 lb to 8 lb line is ideal. Locals report good success using fish finders to locate schools of crappie, which tend to stack vertically around cover. In Spring and Fall focus on the 8 to 12 foot range.

Largemouth Bass

Current Report: Good
Outlook: Good

Bass take a back seat to walleye, crappie and wipers at Lake Rathbun, however there are still bass to be caught, some in bragging size. The bass here follow the baitfish throughout Summer and Fall. In Spring they move to protected areas in coves and pockets to spawn, feeding on bluegill and crawfish primarily. Locals report catching bass on a wide variety of lures. The lake is home to numerous bass tournaments annually, and many tournament anglers are throwing spinnerbaits and vibrating jigs as a primary bait. Mornings and evenings are delivering some nice fish on a buzzbait. During slow times, when the bass are finicky, a stick worm, rigged wacky style, is a great way to fool them into biting.

Fish species to fish for...

Guide to fishing for largemouth bass, channel catfish, flathead catfish, black crappie, walleye, bluegill, warmouth, white bass and hybrid striped bass at Rathbun Lake in Iowa.

Rathbun Lake is an 11,000-acre lake with over 150 miles of shoreline for fishing, which produces big walleye, bass and crappie. The full list of fish species includes bass, catfish, crappie, walleye, sunfish and hybrid stripers. Several boat launch ramps are open to the public.

Primary fish species to catch

Click images for fishing tips and details about each species.

Today's Weather & Forecast

Public Boat Launch Ramps & Landings

Click here for boat ramps available at this lake.

Marinas

Click here for marinas available at this lake.

Fishing License

Click here for a Iowa Fishing License.

Map - Fishing & Access

Rick Seaman is a fishing enthusiast with over five decades of fishing experience, a retired tournament fisherman, author of numerous published articles on fishing, and co-author of the book "Bass Fishing - It's not WHAT you throw, It's WHERE you throw it".