Favorite Lakes for Small Boat Fishing

A small boat will fit safely somewhere on most lakes with a little planning. But in every state in the U.S. there are some lakes more suitable for fishing from small boats than others. They may be local water supply lakes, relatively small game and fish commission lakes that are managed just for fishing, or large resevoirs with numerous tributaries that can provide some great fishing from small boats without having to venture out on to the main body of water. And then there are the numerous rivers and streams that meander through every state that provide fishing fishing for everything from smallmouth bass to giant catfish.

In this section, I'll talk about my favorite lakes and will link to pictures and comments of visitors who want to send info about their favorite lakes to me.

Lake Dardanelle: Stretching through five counties in west/central Arkansas, Lake Dardanelle is a fisherman's dream. This nearly 40,000 acre lake is formed by two dams on the McClellan Kerr Arkansas River Navigation system. The system which consists of a series of "lakes" made up of the stretches of water between dams, doesn't actually consist of many of these stretches of water that actually resemble lakes. But Lake Dardanelle is one of the exceptions. One of my favorite fishing locations for three decades.......Read more

Sugarloaf Lake in Western Arkansas has been a part of my fishing life for 37 years. I started fishing on the lake at the ripe old age of 17 when my family first moved to Fort Smith in 1972. At that time Sugarloaf had an operating "resort" which consisted of a bait house, hamburger stand, launch ramp, and picnic tables.  Granted, not much of a resort, but the lake is a small, 330 acre Arkansas Game and Fish Commission lake.  The lake's claim to fame at that time was it's monster bluegill and abundant catfish that were caught in large numbers both from small boats and the bank (particularly the dam which had direct foot path access).  At that time, standing timber populated the majority of the lake with the only clear area being the deep lower end of the lake which is over fifty feet deep.

Lake Hinkle in Western Central Arkansas One of my all time favorite lakes to fish in spring and fall is Lake Hinkle around 50 miles from Fort Smith, and about 12 miles southwest of Waldron Arkansas. I started fishing Lake Hinkle (as I did most every waterhole I've ever found) back when I was a very young man - about 36 years ago.