West Virginia Fishing

All about fishing in the Mountain State

The number of fishing lakes in the state of West Virginia is limited but the quality of fishing makes up for it. Big bass, fat walleyes, plentiful crappie and monster stripers and catfish are available to anglers in their favorite lakes, ponds, streams and rivers. Here, you can fish for largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, spotted bass, blue catfish, channel catfish, flathead catfish, black crappie, white crappie, walleye, rainbow trout, brook trout, brown trout, bluegill, rock bass, white bass, yellow perch, stripers, bowfin, chain pickerel, longnose gar, muskie, northern pike, sauger, saugeye and tiger muskie in local lakes, rivers, ponds and/or streams.

Major West Virginia Lakes

West Virginia major lakes and fish chart

Lake & Fish Chart

Major angling destinations, cross referenced with species found in each of the lakes or impoundments. For a detailed list of primary fish species in WV, plus state fish records, see the list below.

Lakes, sizes and locations in the state.

Beech Fork Lake is a 720-acre lake in the west-central part of the state, at Lavalette.

Bluestone Lake is a 2,000 acre lake in south WV, at Hinton.

Burnsville Lake is a 1,900-acre lake in central West Virginia, at Burnsville.

Cheat Lake is a 1,770-acre lake in the northeast part of the state, at Morgantown.

East Lynn Lake is a 1,000-acre lake in the west-central part of the state, at Kiahsville.

Jennings Randolph Lake is a 950-acre lake in northeast WV, 6 miles north of Skyline.

Moncove Lake is a 144-acre lake in eastern WV, at Roxalia,

Mount Storm Lake is a 1,200-acre lake in the northeast part of the state, at Bismarck.

O’Brien Lake is a 217-acre lake in western WV, 7 miles east of Ripley.

Stonewall Jackson Lake is a 2,600-acre lake in the central part of the state, at Walkersville.

Summersville Lake is a 2,700-acre lake in the central part of the state, at Mt Nebo.

Tygart Lake is a 1,700-acre lake in the northeast part of the state, at Grafton.

Fish Species & State Records in West Virginia

Bass

Largemouth bass

World record: 22 lbs 4 oz

State Record: 12.28 lbs

Smallmouth bass

World record: 11 lbs 15 oz

State Record: 9.75 lbs

Spotted bass

World record: 9 lbs 8 oz

State Record: 4.77 lbs

Catfish

Channel catfish

World record: 58 lbs 0 oz

State Record: 33.42 lbs

Flathead catfish

World record: 123 lbs 9 oz

State Record: 70.0 lbs

Blue catfish

World record: 143 lbs 0 oz

State Record: 59.74 lbs

Crappie

Black crappie

World record: 6 lbs 0 oz

State Record: 4.05* lbs

White crappie

World record: 5 lbs 3 oz

State Record: 4.05* lbs

Walleye, Sauger & Saugeye

Walleye

World record: 25 lbs 0 oz

State Record: 18.97 lbs

Sauger

World record: 17 lbs 7 oz

State Record: 5.06 lbs

Saugeye

World record: 15 lbs 6 oz

State Record: 8.73 lbs

Trout

Rainbow trout

World record: 42 lbs 2 oz

State Record: 19.4 lbs

Brook trout

World record: 14 lbs 8 oz

State Record: 7.64 lbs

Brown trout

World record: 40 lbs 4 oz

State Record: 16.0 lbs

Golden trout

World record: 11 lbs 4 oz

State Record: 9.31 lbs

Panfish

Bluegill

World record: 4 lbs 12 oz

State Record: 2.75 lbs

Rock bass

World record: 3.0 lbs

State Record: 1.75 lbs

White Bass

World record: 6.8 lbs

State Record: 4.56 lbs

Yellow perch

World record: 4 lbs 3 oz

State Record: 1.93 lbs

Striped bass

Stripers

Inland world record: 64 lbs 8 oz

State Record: 45.70 lbs

Hybrid Striper (Wiper)

World record: 27 lbs 5 oz

State Record: 16.75 lbs

Other species

Bowfin

World record: 21 lbs 8 oz

State Record: 9.25 lbs

Chain pickerel

World record: 9 lbs 6 oz

State Record: 6.19 lbs

Longnose gar

World record: 50 lbs 5 oz

State Record: 19.08 lbs

Muskie (Muskellunge)

World record: 69 lbs 9 oz

State Record: 49.75 lbs

Northern pike

World record: 55 lbs 1 oz

State Record: 22.06 lbs

Tiger muskie

World record: 51 lbs 2 oz

State Record: 36.5 lbs

Click the images and links above for species details.

State of WV Fishing Information

Click here for a West Virginia fishing license. The West Virginia Division of Natural Resources website offers a great deal of information about fishing in West Virginia.

Visit AA-Boats-Boating.com to find information about fishing boats in West Virginia and other boating information. There is a section dedicated to activities for kids in WV. It includes fishing stories, fish photos and tips for where and how to take a kid fishing in West Virginia.