Winona Lake

Kosciusko County, Indiana · IN DNR bathymetric survey

78ft Max
depth

560 acres 15 contours Public access

Paddling Index34Modestmotorboats prohibited in zones

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Depth scale

052035506578

The lake

Survey readout

Winona Lake is mapped to a depth of 78 ft on the Indiana DNR survey and covers about 560 acres in Kosciusko County, Indiana. Depths come from the Indiana DNR survey of 2017.

Measured from the Indiana DNR lake bathymetry survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 78 ft
Survey year: 2017
Surface area: 560 acres
Shoreline: 5.9 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 4% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Ramp · Indiana DNR site · 1 more

Additional depth details15 contours

Contour depths: 0–78 ft
Recorded point soundings: 78 ft

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Location

Kosciusko County, Indiana · 15 nearest of 27 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: 41.22363, -85.83252
IN DNR lake ID: 155351704
Vertical exaggeration: 1.4×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.4 MB

Paddling

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

34 / 100ModestData confidence: High

Winona Lake has a substantially developed setting, moderate open-water exposure, substantial nearby higher-volume roads. Watercraft controls: Motorboats prohibited in zones.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Modest	0.6 of 30	16% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (4% forest, 12% wetland; 74% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Good	10.6 of 25	mean fetch 1,631 m · 2% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · moderate open-water fetch
Watercraft controls	Motorboats prohibited in zones	9.0 of 15	Motorboats prohibited — designated zones only
Public access	Good	12.8 of 15	2 DNR fishing access sites · boat ramp · ADA-accessible · fishing pier
Road isolation	Modest	0.8 of 15	substantial nearby higher-volume roads · 80 INDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 30,069 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: Low — wide enough that wakes disperse over most of the lake
Aquatic vegetation: Low — approximately 4% 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 — 4% forest and 12% 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

21 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

Bigmouth Buffalo

Sucker

White Sucker

Quillback

Gizzard Shad

About these fish → the Fish of Indiana guide

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 21 species found here — 19 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.

Bigmouth BuffaloOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Buffalo”)

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)).

Bigmouth BuffaloOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Buffalo”)

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”)

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”)

Gizzard ShadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Gizzard shad”) No limit on harvest, but live shad may not be kept: live gizzard or threadfin shad may be possessed or used as bait only on eight named waters (Brookville, Cecil M. Harden, Monroe and Patoka reservoirs, Lakes Freeman and Shafer, Hardy Lake, the Ohio River main stem excluding its embayments), and only where collected. Everywhere else shad must be killed immediately (312 IAC 9-6-8(b)–(d)).

Green 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 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.

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

Northern PikeOpen to harvestMinimum size: 24" · Daily limit: 3 (312 IAC 9-7-5(a), (b)) No more than one of the three may be over 30 inches.

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.

QuillbackOpen 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.

Rock BassOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 25 (312 IAC 9-7-11)

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

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.

WalleyeOpen to harvestMinimum size: 16" · Daily limit: 6 (312 IAC 9-7-12(b) · north of State Road 26) Walleye minimum here is 16 inches because the lake lies north of State Road 26. The 6 is in any combination of walleye, sauger and saugeye.

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 2017 and 2020

518Fish sampled

21Species

Gamefish Largemouth Bass 168 · Walleye 42 · Channel Catfish 4 · Bowfin 1

Panfish Yellow Perch 122 · Bluegill 76 · Black Crappie 9

All survey species21 species

Gamefish

Largemouth Bass168 caught · to 19″

Walleye42 caught · to 23″

Channel Catfish4 caught · to 29″

Bowfin1 caught · to 21″

Northern Pike1 caught · to 33″

Panfish

Yellow Perch122 caught · to 10″

Bluegill76 caught · to 9″

Black Crappie9 caught · to 12″

Pumpkinseed9 caught · to 8″

Rock Bass6 caught · to 9″

Green Sunfish1 caught · to 6″

Bullhead & catfish

Brown Bullhead10 caught · to 14″

Yellow Bullhead3 caught · to 13″

Forage & nongame

Gizzard Shad40 caught · to 16″

Common Carp11 caught · to 25″

Spotted Gar4 caught · to 22″

Sucker4 caught · to 18″

Quillback3 caught · to 21″

White Sucker2 caught · to 18″

Bigmouth Buffalo1 caught · to 22″

Longnose Gar1 caught · to 30″

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

Winona Lake — common questions

How deep is Winona Lake?

The deepest contour on the Indiana DNR bathymetric survey of Winona Lake is 78 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 Winona Lake?

Winona Lake covers about 560 acres in Kosciusko County, Indiana.

What fish are in Winona Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include channel catfish, largemouth bass, northern pike, walleye, black crappie, bluegill. The page lists all 21 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Winona Lake?

Yes. The Indiana DNR lists 2 public access sites on Winona Lake: Winona Lake (boat ramp); Winona Lake Pier (shoreline fishing site).