Guide To Great Fishing In West Virginia
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, redbreast sunfish, redear sunfish, 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 & Species
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.
Fishing lake 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
Redbreast sunfish
World record: 2 lbs 0 oz*
State Record: N/A
Redear sunfish
World record: 5.4 lbs
State Record: N/A
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.
Fish for big bass
Excellent largemouth, spotted and smallmouth bass fishing opportunities are available to anglers.
Quality striped bass fishing can be found at several WV lakes and the rivers feeding them.
Fishing in all states
