Moss Lake

Noble County, Indiana · IN DNR bathymetric survey

18ft Max
depth

8.8 acres 3 contours Public access

Paddling Index92Excellentaway from major roads · sheltered geometry · speed limit

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Depth scale

05101518

The lake

Survey readout

Moss Lake is mapped to a depth of 18 ft on the Indiana DNR survey and covers about 8.8 acres in Noble County, Indiana. Depths come from the Indiana DNR survey of 2013.

Measured from the Indiana DNR lake bathymetry survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 18 ft
Survey year: 2013
Surface area: 8.8 acres
Shoreline: 0.64 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 5% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: By water from another ramp · Indiana DNR: “Use Village or Knapp Lake Ramp”

Additional depth details3 contours

Contour depths: 0–18 ft
Recorded point soundings: 18 ft

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Location

Noble County, Indiana · 15 nearest of 26 lakes · tap a dot for that lake

Chart data

Provenance

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

⚠ Not for navigation

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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: 41.34298, -85.61496
IN DNR lake ID: 155642923
Vertical exaggeration: 3.0× below the waterline; land at true scale
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 0.4 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-10-08

92 / 100ExcellentData confidence: High

Moss Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped setting, well sheltered geometry, little nearby major-road exposure. Watercraft controls: Speed limit.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Excellent	30.0 of 30	93% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (18% forest, 75% wetland; 0% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Excellent	25.0 of 25	mean fetch 216 m · 100% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · short fetch in most directions
Watercraft controls	Speed limit	9.0 of 15	Speed limit
Public access	Good	12.8 of 15	1 DNR fishing access site · DNR directs boaters to a ramp on connected water
Road isolation	Excellent	15.0 of 15	relatively isolated from major roads · 0 INDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km

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: High — narrow throughout — passing wakes would reach most of the water
Aquatic vegetation: Low — approximately 5% 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: High — 18% forest and 75% 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

15 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

White Sucker

Lake Chubsucker

Hybrid Sunfish

About these fish → the Fish of Indiana guide

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 15 species found here — 12 open to harvest.

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.

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”)

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”)

BowfinOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Bowfin”) Roe must stay intact inside the fish while on or beside the water and until processing begins; once removed, roe may not be screened, washed, processed, preserved, stored, kept, given away, sold or transported without a roe harvester's license (312 IAC 9-7-14(f), (g)).

Brown BullheadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Bullhead”)

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.

Lake ChubsuckerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Sucker”) Greater redhorse is endangered in Indiana (312 IAC 9-6-9) and may not be taken — identify redhorse carefully.

Largemouth BassOpen to harvestMinimum size: 14" · Daily limit: 5 (312 IAC 9-7-6(a), (c)(3)) The 5 is black bass in aggregate — any combination of largemouth, smallmouth and spotted bass — not 5 of each.

PumpkinseedRule 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.

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

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

WarmouthRule 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.

White SuckerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Sucker”) Greater redhorse is endangered in Indiana (312 IAC 9-6-9) and may not be taken — identify redhorse carefully.

Yellow BullheadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Bullhead”)

Yellow PerchOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (IN DNR 2026-27 guide, statewide table · 312 IAC 9-7-18 (Lake Michigan only)) The code limits yellow perch only on Lake Michigan (15); the DNR's statewide table prints inland perch as unlimited.

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 2011

234Fish sampled

15Species

Gamefish Largemouth Bass 40 · Bowfin 2

Panfish Bluegill 89 · Redear Sunfish 51 · Pumpkinseed 3

All survey species15 species

Gamefish

Largemouth Bass40 caught · to 19″

Bowfin2 caught · to 18″

Panfish

Bluegill89 caught · to 8″

Redear Sunfish51 caught · to 10″

Pumpkinseed3 caught · to 6″

Black Crappie2 caught · to 9″

Yellow Perch2 caught · to 11″

Hybrid Sunfish1 caught · to 5″

Warmouth1 caught · to 5″

Bullhead & catfish

Yellow Bullhead14 caught · to 12″

Brown Bullhead2 caught · to 12″

Forage & nongame

Spotted Gar11 caught · to 27″

Common Carp8 caught · to 29″

Lake Chubsucker6 caught · to 11″

White Sucker2 caught · to 18″

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).

Quick answers

Moss Lake — common questions

How deep is Moss Lake?

The deepest contour on the Indiana DNR bathymetric survey of Moss Lake is 18 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 Moss Lake?

Moss Lake covers about 8.8 acres in Noble County, Indiana.

What fish are in Moss Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, bowfin, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish. The page lists all 15 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Moss Lake?

The Indiana DNR lists Moss Lake as open to the public by water rather than from a ramp of its own: its access record reads "Moss Lake (Use Village or Knapp Lake Ramp)". The launch is on connected water, not on Moss Lake itself.

More lakes in Noble County