Worster Lake

St. Joseph County, Indiana · IN DNR bathymetric survey

18ft Max
depth

338 acres 6 contours Public access

Paddling Index78Goodelectric motors only · wooded shoreline · away from major roads

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Depth scale

0369121518

The lake

Survey readout

Worster Lake is mapped to a depth of 18 ft on the Indiana DNR survey and covers about 338 acres in St. Joseph County, Indiana.

Measured from the Indiana DNR lake bathymetry survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 18 ft
Surface area: 338 acres
Shoreline: 7.88 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 5% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Ramp · Worster Lake East Boat Launch · Indiana DNR site · 1 more

Additional depth details6 contours

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

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Location

St. Joseph County, Indiana · all 5 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: 41.54809, -86.36492
IN DNR lake ID: worster-lake
Vertical exaggeration: 3.0×
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.3 MB

Paddling

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

78 / 100GoodData confidence: High

Worster Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped setting, generally sheltered geometry, limited nearby major-road exposure. Watercraft controls: Electric motors only.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Excellent	25.4 of 30	85% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (70% forest, 14% wetland; 4% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Very Good	15.1 of 25	mean fetch 1,059 m · 4% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · generally short fetch
Watercraft controls	Electric motors only	14.2 of 15	Electric motors only
Public access	Good	12.8 of 15	2 DNR fishing access sites · boat ramp · fishing pier
Road isolation	Very Good	10.5 of 15	limited nearby major-road exposure · 8 INDOT-classified segments within 1.2 km, peak 1,916 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 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 — 70% forest and 14% 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

17 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

Striped Bass

Largemouth Bass

White Sucker

Gizzard Shad

Hybrid Sunfish

Golden Shiner

Brook Silverside

About these fish → the Fish of Indiana guide

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 17 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”)

Brook SilversideRule 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.

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”)

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)).

Golden ShinerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: none stated (312 IAC 9-7-15) A minnow under the code’s definition (312 IAC 9-6-1). Minnows may be taken at any time of year by minnow trap, dip net, seine, cast net or lawful sport-fishing methods; the section states no bag or size limit, caps transport out of Indiana at 100 minnows in any 24-hour period (licensed bait dealers, scientific-purposes licensees and those commercially raising minnows in private waters for sale excepted), and requires a bait dealer’s license to sell (312 IAC 9-7-15).

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.

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 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))

Striped BassOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 2 (312 IAC 9-7-8)

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.

Official rule text for this lake

“An individual may take minnows at any time during the year.” — 312 IAC 9-7-15(a), 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 2016 and 2024

1,833Fish sampled

17Species

Gamefish Largemouth Bass 96

Panfish Bluegill 859 · Yellow Perch 188 · Pumpkinseed 85

All survey species17 species

Gamefish

Largemouth Bass96 caught · to 19″

Panfish

Bluegill859 caught · to 9″

Yellow Perch188 caught · to 10″

Pumpkinseed85 caught · to 7″

Redear Sunfish65 caught · to 8″

Warmouth35 caught · to 8″

Black Crappie28 caught · to 11″

Hybrid Sunfish5 caught · to 6″

Green Sunfish1 caught · to 5″

Bullhead & catfish

Brown Bullhead35 caught · to 14″

Yellow Bullhead17 caught · to 12″

Forage & nongame

Gizzard Shad319 caught · to 16″

Striped Bass43 caught · to 26″

Golden Shiner32 caught · to 9″

White Sucker15 caught · to 17″

Common Carp6 caught · to 32″

Brook Silverside4 caught · to 3″

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

Worster Lake — common questions

How deep is Worster Lake?

The deepest contour on the Indiana DNR bathymetric survey of Worster 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 Worster Lake?

Worster Lake covers about 338 acres in St. Joseph County, Indiana.

What fish are in Worster Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, green sunfish, hybrid sunfish. The page lists all 17 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to Worster Lake?

Yes. The Indiana DNR lists 2 public access sites on Worster Lake: Worster Lake East Boat Launch (boat ramp); Worster Lake West Boat Launch (boat ramp).

More lakes in St. Joseph County