Lyman Lake is a reservoir in Arizona, near Apache County.
Lyman Lake is a reservoir in Apache County, Arizona and covers about 1,500 acres, reaches about 57 feet at its deepest point and holds roughly 44,500 acre-feet.
Wind can change Lyman Lake quickly, so pick one manageable section and learn it before crossing open water. Deep water at Lyman Lake gives fish room to move away from shore as summer heat and bright light build.
Lyman Lake sits on the Little Colorado River and offers one of Arizona’s clearer walleye opportunities outside the largest reservoirs. Broad flats, river inflow, rocky points, and changing storage support both warm-water fish and roaming walleye.
Work jigs or crankbaits on points and the old channel for walleye, soft plastics around cover for largemouth, and small jigs for crappie or bluegill. Flathead and channel catfish need separate live- and cut-bait passes.
Lyman covers about 1,500 acres and reaches roughly 57 feet. It has enough depth for fish to leave the bank, but the old Little Colorado path and long points remain easier to repeat than featureless open water.
Walleye often use a firm point at low light and slide toward the channel as the day brightens. Work the crown with a crankbait, then follow the drop with a jig instead of leaving after one shallow pass.
Crappie and bluegill need brush, weeds, or a small depth change. Largemouth use the same protected water with a larger soft plastic. Keep the panfish jig small and close to the edge.
A runoff pulse can add color to the river end. Fish the first clean seam below it, especially where the seam crosses a point or channel bend. Walleye and catfish may use that transition without sitting in the muddiest water.
Fish listed for Lyman Lake include Black Crappie, Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Common Carp, Flathead Catfish, Green Sunfish, Largemouth Bass, and Walleye.
An early walleye check should work a jig, minnow rig, or light crankbait along points and the old channel edge.
To begin with black crappie, fish a light jig or minnow around wood, weeds, and sharp little drops.
When looking for bluegill, use a small jig, worm, or tiny plastic around green weeds and protected pockets.
Targeting largemouth bass calls for a plan to work a soft plastic, jig, or spinnerbait around weeds and protected cover.
On an first pass, other targets listed here include Channel Catfish, and Common Carp; give each one its own bait and depth instead of trying to catch everything with the same rig.
For a first pass on Lyman Lake, do not let the deepest number control the whole day; nearby cover, firm bottom, and food usually matter more than the deepest hole by itself.
Before moving far on this water, early in the year, protected water and the first warm afternoon can be the best clues; as the water heats up, test lower edges without assuming every fish is on the bottom; cooling fall water often makes points and firm banks useful again.
For an first pass, a midweight 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.
After a bite, write down water color, productive depth, cover, and wind; those details help more on the next trip than a long list of empty spots.
A direct approach on this water works like this: keep the first hour simple: try one moving bait to find active fish, slow down with a jig or natural bait on the best edge, and repeat the same setup when two bites come from matching depth and bottom during that part of the trip.
It brings current, food, and changing water color into the upper end and leaves an old channel through the reservoir.
Fish a firm point or old-channel turn with a jig, minnow rig, or small crankbait during low light.
Use cut bait on open channel edges for channel catfish and live bait near heavy cover for flatheads.
Explore nearby waters, including local Featured destinations. Check each page for access and fishing restrictions.
Distances are straight-line estimates between mapped water locations.