Union Lake is a reservoir in New Jersey, near Cumberland County.
Union Lake covers 898 acres in Cumberland County. The verified maximum depth at Union Lake is 27 feet; a dependable storage-volume figure was not found for this water.
Union Lake is an 898-acre South Jersey reservoir with a verified maximum depth of 27 feet and a fish mix that is unusual for the region.
The lake combines shallow cover, broad flats, points and a defined reservoir channel. Largemouth bass fit the cover, while smallmouth bass are better matched to firmer bottom and rock.
Union Lake supports one of South Jersey’s rare smallmouth-bass opportunities and a landlocked striped-bass population. State sampling once collected a 42-inch striped bass here.
Fish reported from Union Lake include black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, chain pickerel, channel catfish, common carp, largemouth bass, longear sunfish, smallmouth bass, and yellow perch.
When largemouth bass hold tight to cover on Union Lake, a compact jig or weedless worm is more useful than repeated open-water casts. Rocky points on Union Lake suit a grub, tube or compact crankbait when smallmouth are the target.
A soft-plastic minnow or live minnow placed beside cover is a sound crappie approach on Union Lake. For sunfish on Union Lake, keep a cricket or tiny jig close to weed edges and shaded wood. For Union Lake yellow perch, work a light jig slowly along the first firm-bottom break.
For Union Lake pickerel, cover weed edges with a flashy moving lure and use a short leader when bite-offs become common.
After dark, try a nightcrawler or cut bait near a channel turn when fishing Union Lake for channel catfish. Bullheads at Union Lake will take worms and small pieces of cut bait presented close to soft bottom. Common carp in Union Lake can be targeted with corn or dough bait on a simple bottom rig.
Union Lake is too large to treat as one uniform piece of water. Divide Union Lake into an upper section, a middle section and the dam or basin end, then stay with the zone showing the best cover and bait. Before leaving a productive-looking section of Union Lake, change retrieve speed or depth once so location and presentation are not changed at the same time.
Early spring on Union Lake calls for a slow presentation near the first break outside protected water. At midday in summer, Union Lake anglers should slow down beside shade, weeds or a nearby depth change. Fall on Union Lake is a good time for small crankbaits and swimbaits around moving forage.
Use a moving bait to sample shallow cover, then take a tube or Ned rig across firm points for smallmouth. When bait leaves the bank, scan open water before assuming the striped bass are inactive.
A medium spinning rod with 8- to 10-pound line handles jigs, small crankbaits and live-bait rigs on Union Lake. A medium-heavy rod with 12- to 15-pound line covers spinnerbaits, bass jigs and bottom rigs on Union Lake without making the lighter fishing awkward.
It offers smallmouth bass and a landlocked striped-bass population in a region dominated by shallower warmwater lakes.
The verified maximum depth in this record is 27 feet.
An electrofishing survey collected a striped bass measuring 42 inches.
Explore nearby waters, including local Featured destinations. Check each page for access and fishing restrictions.
Distances are straight-line estimates between mapped water locations.