Buffalo Trace Lake

Harrison County, Indiana · IN DNR bathymetric survey

6ft Max
depth

30 acres 6 contours Public access

Paddling Index58Mixedsheltered geometry

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Depth scale

0123456

The lake

Survey readout

Buffalo Trace Lake is mapped to a depth of 6 ft on the Indiana DNR survey and covers about 30 acres in Harrison County, Indiana. Depths come from the Indiana DNR survey of 2017.

Measured from the Indiana DNR lake bathymetry survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 6 ft
Survey year: 2017
Surface area: 30 acres
Shoreline: 1.04 mi · lobed
Aquatic vegetation: 2% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Shoreline · Buffalo Trace Park · Indiana DNR site

Additional depth details6 contours

Contour depths: 0–6 ft
Recorded point soundings: 6 ft

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Location

Harrison County, Indiana · the only mapped lake in this county

Chart data

Provenance

Sources: IN DNR Lake Bathymetry, USGS 3DEP, USDA NAIP (public domain), OpenStreetMap (ODbL).

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Map details & sources4 sources

All layers registered to one bounding box; positions in WGS 84.

Survey-derived depth contours drape over USGS 3DEP elevation, with a USDA NAIP aerial basemap and OpenStreetMap shoreline. Color shows surveyed depth; dark lines are the survey's own isobaths.

Coordinates: 38.41064, -86.10206
IN DNR lake ID: 49306509
Vertical exaggeration: 3.0× below the waterline; land at true scale
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 1.2 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-09-21

58 / 100MixedData confidence: High

Buffalo Trace Lake has a mixed natural and developed setting, well sheltered geometry, nearby higher-volume roads. No special watercraft restriction is identified in the current source.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Mixed	9.9 of 30	39% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (37% forest, 0% wetland; 16% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	25.0 of 25	mean fetch 408 m · 88% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controls	None identified	7.5 of 15	No special watercraft restriction identified in the current DNR source. Motors permitted, subject to general law.
Public access	Good	10.5 of 15	1 DNR fishing access site · shoreline access · fishing pier
Road isolation	Mixed	4.7 of 15	nearby higher-volume roads · 9 INDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 6,922 vehicles/day

Additional paddling considerations

These describe the lake but are not part of the v1 Paddling Index and do not change the number above.

Wake sensitivity: Moderate — narrow in places — wakes would carry across parts of the lake
Aquatic vegetation: Low — approximately 2% mapped coverage · NAIP aerial imagery (NDVI)
Observed motorized activity: Unknown — No lake-level measurement of boat traffic is available. Legal permission to operate motors is not evidence of use.
Wildlife habitat potential: Limited — 37% forest and 0% wetland cover within 150 m of shore

Compare Indiana lakes by Paddling Index →

How this index is calculated. The Paddling Index is a relative composite derived from lake geometry and public environmental, access, roadway and watercraft-control data. It is not a user review, a safety rating, or a prediction of an individual outing. Differences of a few points should not be treated as meaningful — an 84 and an 82 are broadly comparable. Components and weights: natural setting 30%, geometric wind exposure 25%, watercraft controls 15%, public access 15%, road isolation 15%; observed motorboat activity is weighted 0% because no defensible lake-level measurement exists. Where a component has no data the remaining weights are renormalized and the confidence rating is lowered; below Medium confidence no number is shown. Sources: USGS NHD waterbody outline, USGS/MRLC NLCD Land Cover (2021), IN DNR Fishing Access Sites (motor restrictions) (2026-08), IN DNR Fishing Access Sites (2026-08) and INDOT Annual Average Daily Traffic (2021). Conditions change quickly — check current weather and local conditions before going out.

Fish you might catch

from DNR surveys

9 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colors, not photographs (provenance).

Common Carp

Hybrid Sunfish

About these fish → the Fish of Indiana guide

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 9 species found here — 7 open to harvest, 1 with a special rule or closed season.

These are hook-and-line size and daily limit rules. The fishing code sets no closed season for these species on inland lakes, but posted property rules can close a water — see the notes. Gear, spearing and bow fishing, netting and bait collection are set by other sections of 312 IAC 9 and are not shown here.

Largemouth BassSpecial rulesLargemouth bass from 12 to 15 inches may not be kept here — a protected slot (312 IAC 9-7-6(e)). Bass under 12 or over 15 inches count toward the 5-fish aggregate.

Black CrappieOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (312 IAC 9-7-14(a)) Black and white crappie together.

Beta. This panel is newly published. Every value is transcribed from the Indiana Administrative Code (312 IAC 9-7) and checked against the Indiana DNR's 2026-27 Fishing Regulations Guide, but the coverage and wording are still under review. If anything here disagrees with 312 IAC 9-7 or the Indiana DNR's guide, the DNR is right — the Administrative Code is the legal text; the guide summarizes it.

No closed season in the fishing code: 312 IAC 9-7 sets no season for these species on inland lakes (trout and salmon “at any time of year”, 9-7-13(d)(1)). Posted property rules can still close a water or bar entry (312 IAC 8-2-1) and 312 IAC 9-6-6 closes a few named areas, so check the property before you go. The possession limit is twice the daily bag limit (312 IAC 9-1-12.1); fish already processed and stored at your primary residence do not count toward it (312 IAC 9-2-8(d)).

Black CrappieOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (312 IAC 9-7-14(a)) Black and white crappie together.

BluegillOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Bluegill”)

Channel CatfishOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 10 (312 IAC 9-7-3(b), (d)) The 10 is catfish in aggregate of any size from a lake or reservoir. Of those, not more than one channel catfish 28 inches or longer, one blue catfish 35 inches or longer and one flathead catfish 35 inches or longer per day.

Common CarpOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Carp”)

Hybrid SunfishRule not confidently resolvedNot named in 312 IAC 9-7 or in the DNR guide's limits table. Please check with the Indiana DNR (317-232-4200) before keeping this species.

Largemouth BassSpecial rulesLargemouth bass from 12 to 15 inches may not be kept here — a protected slot (312 IAC 9-7-6(e)). Bass under 12 or over 15 inches count toward the 5-fish aggregate.

Longnose GarOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Gar”)

Redear SunfishOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (312 IAC 9-7-14(c))

White CrappieOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (312 IAC 9-7-14(a)) Black and white crappie together.

Official rule text for this lake

“An individual must not take or possess a largemouth bass unless the largemouth bass is less than twelve (12) inches long or more than fifteen (15) inches long from the following designated lakes: (1) Buffalo Trace Lake in Harrison County.” — 312 IAC 9-7-6(e), Indiana Administrative Code

From 312 IAC 9-7 (Sport fishing), Indiana Administrative Code (readopted 2025-03-25), and the 2026-2027 Indiana Fishing Regulations Guide · verified 2026-09-15. Regulations can change — the Indiana Administrative Code (312 IAC 9-7) is the controlling source; verify current regulations before fishing. Official regulations

Compiled from Indiana DNR fishery surveys. Silhouettes are stylized and scaled to typical adult sizes relative to one another. Presence is not a promise — fishing isn’t a sure thing.

Fishery

surveyed 2013 and 2018

768Fish sampled

9Species

Gamefish Largemouth Bass 435 · Channel Catfish 20

Panfish Bluegill 172 · Redear Sunfish 108 · White Crappie 7

All survey species9 species

Gamefish

Largemouth Bass435 caught · to 12″

Channel Catfish20 caught · to 24″

Panfish

Bluegill172 caught · to 8″

Redear Sunfish108 caught · to 11″

White Crappie7 caught · to 14″

Black Crappie6 caught · to 12″

Hybrid Sunfish2 caught · to 5″

Forage & nongame

Common Carp17 caught · to 26″

Longnose Gar1 caught · to 33″

Length is the largest fish netted in the survey, not an angler record. Source: Indiana DNR fish survey (Indiana Data Hub) (counts summed across survey years).

Non-native species records

No non-native species recorded in the available dataset. This does not confirm that no non-native species are present.

Source: Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership Conservation Planner; underlying nonindigenous species records from the USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species database.

Quick answers

Buffalo Trace Lake — common questions

How deep is Buffalo Trace Lake?

The deepest contour on the Indiana DNR bathymetric survey of Buffalo Trace Lake is 6 ft. That is the deepest depth the historical survey map records, which may differ from the deepest point of the lake itself.

How big is Buffalo Trace Lake?

Buffalo Trace Lake covers about 30 acres in Harrison County, Indiana.

What fish are in Buffalo Trace Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include channel catfish, largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, hybrid sunfish, longnose gar. The page lists all 9 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Buffalo Trace Lake?

Yes, from shore. The Indiana DNR lists a public access site on Buffalo Trace Lake: a shoreline fishing site with a fishing pier, a boat dock and restrooms. DNR directions: "0.5 mi. east of Palmyra on US 150."