Cheney Lake

Cheney Lake is a lake in Apache County, Arizona and covers about 7.7 acres, reaches about 13.7 feet at its deepest point and holds roughly 42 acre-feet.

For a first pass on Cheney Lake, one weed edge or deeper pocket can hold much of the day’s activity.

Fish and Baits

Fish listed for Cheney Lake include Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Green Sunfish, and Largemouth Bass.

When bluegill are the target on Cheney Lake, use a small jig, worm, or tiny plastic around green weeds and protected pockets.

For largemouth bass on Cheney Lake, work a soft plastic, jig, or spinnerbait around weeds and protected cover.

The first channel catfish pass on Cheney Lake should fish cut bait or a nightcrawler on the bottom along a channel edge or warm flat.

How to Read the Water

One way to read Cheney Lake is this: use wind as a clue; a light push can carry food toward a bank, but hard wind may muddy it, so look for a clean edge near a point or protected pocket.

Season by Season

A direct approach on Cheney Lake works like this: in spring, start with warming banks, creek mouths, and shallow cover; summer usually pushes the better bite toward the outside weed edge or a nearby drop; fall can bring bait back to windblown points, while winter calls for smaller moves and a slower pace.

A Simple Tackle Plan

To narrow down Cheney Lake, a medium spinning rod, 8-pound line, a small box of jigs, a few crankbaits, and a simple bottom rig cover most situations; change depth or speed before changing every piece of tackle.

While learning Cheney Lake, record the wind, water color, productive depth, and cover after a bite; those four notes are more useful on the next trip than a long list of spots that did not produce.