Fishing Report For Raccoon Lake, IN

By Rick Seaman

May 3, 2025

Fish species to fish for...

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Cecil M Harden Lake Fishing Video
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Fishing Report Cecil M Harden Lake, Indiana

Fishing Reports

Popular Fish Species Raccoon Lake, IN

Largemouth Bass

Current Report: Good
Outlook: Very Good

A lot of bass are being caught at Raccoon Lake, although not many lunkers are taken here. Three and four pounders are not uncommon, and recent bass tournament results report it still takes close to a 3-pound average to win first prize. There are fish habitat structures planted around the lake, and the bass tend to hang around these as they attract their food source. Multiple lures are catching lots of largemouth here. Worms, vibrating jigs, jerkbaits and crankbaits are just some of the popular baits.

Striped Bass

Current Report: Good
Outlook: Good

Trolling swimbaits, jerkbaits, crankbaits, and spoons are popular methods for catching striped bass here. Other options include live bait or cut bait. Being successful at fishing for stripers is a matter of locating schools of bait, and wolf packs of stripers are likely to be nearby. Stripers prefer cooler water, so they tend to be found in the deeper regions of Raccoon Lake, except now, in Spring, when they are moving up-river to spawn in shallower water. Fish finders are a big help in locating roaming schools on the main lake other times of the year.

Black Crappie - White Crappie

Current Report: Very Good
Outlook: Very Good

Crappie fishing has been spectacular already this year, with big schools of fat slabs all around the lake. As usual, Spring is the premiere time to be on the water as crappie move into shallower coves to spawn. Expect to find crappie in 3 to 6 feet of water. Docks, brush piles, wood and deep vegetation are a good place to cast small crappie jigs or live minnows. Once the spawn is over, and the hot Summer sun warms the shallows, crappie retreat to depths of 10 to 15 feet, or deeper. Light tackle with 4 lb to 8 lb line is ideal. Anglers are reporting good success using fish finders and forward facing sonar to locate schools of crappie, which tend to stack vertically around deeper cover.

Fishing Video

Fish species to fish for...

Guide to fishing for largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, channel catfish, blue catfish, black crappie, white crappie, walleye, rainbow trout, bluegill, white bass, striped bass and muskie at Cecil M Harden Lake in Indiana.

Raccoon Lake, aka Cecil M. Harden Lake is a 2,100-acre lake with over 35 miles of shoreline to explore in search of your favorite fish. The lake is home to a variety of popular fish species, including largemouth bass, crappie, bluegill, channel catfish, and walleye.

Primary fish species to catch

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Today's Weather & Forecast

Fishing Boat Rentals

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Public Boat Launch Ramps & Landings

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Fishing License

Click here for a Indiana 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".