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Lake Freeman Fishing Report

Updated Mon, Nov 9, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

A Tippecanoe impoundment: Lake Freeman holds bass, crappie and catfish near Monticello.

3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Water temp
~63 F est.
Air / High
36 / 62 F
Wind
WNW 5 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Monday
9
November 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Lake Freeman rewards those who follow the bait as the water cools. Today brings clear skies, wind WNW around 5 mph, steady pressure near 1019 hPa and a high of 62. Water sits around 63 F for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:29 PM-1:29 AM and 11:49 AM-1:49 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

CrappieGood

Pre-spawn fish move toward shallow coves, and Iowa DNR points to wading as an effective way to reach them in spring; minnows or small jigs under a float.

Largemouth bassFair

In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

Catfish (blue, channel)Fair

In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

White bassSlow

The spring run happens in this band: tributaries, shoals and the upper ends of reservoirs as the water reaches about 55Β°F.

Tomorrow: Similar at 62 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Tue, Nov 10, 6:30 AMHow this report is made β†’

Before you go

Indiana requires a fishing licence, from $23.00 for residents. What a Indiana licence costs and where to buy it β†’

Chasing largemouth bass here? Check the size and bag limits with DNR before you keep anything. The season dates for Indiana, read off the agency, are on the Indiana seasons page.

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovNov, ~63 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp36 F
High / Low62 / 35 F
WindWNW 5-14 mph
Pressure1019.2 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain6% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset07:27 / 17:34
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~63 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Which day to fish Lake Freeman this week

The best day on Lake Freeman this week looks like Thursday Nov 12, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today.

Best day this week: Thursday, Nov 12 β€” good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.

Today, Nov 9 β€” Fair

A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Solunar majors
11:29 PM-1:29 AM and 11:49 AM-1:49 PM
Minor period
7:39 AM-8:39 AM
Sun
07:27 to 17:34
Moon
New Moon, 0% lit
Sky and wind
Clear, 10 mph
Rain chance
0%

Forecast-based scores, less reliable further out: how the score is built.

Species guide

The species that matter on Lake Freeman: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Largemouth bass illustration

Largemouth bass

Best: the spring pre-spawn and the fall feed

A warm-water sunfish of lakes, reservoirs, ponds and slow river backwaters that holds tight to cover: weeds, logs, rock ledges and docks. In Texas, TPWD surveys rank it "by far" the freshwater fish anglers most want to catch. In spring, pre-spawn bass push shallow as the water climbs through the mid-50s; in fall they feed actively until the water cools into the low 50s, then drop back toward deeper structure.

Crappie illustration

Crappie

Best: the spring spawn; summer around docks, brush and the thermocline

Two slab-sided panfish, the white crappie and the black crappie, that gather around submerged timber, brush piles, docks and bridge pilings in lakes, reservoirs and slow river backwaters. Texas Parks and Wildlife counts crappie as the state's most popular panfish. Pre-spawn fish move toward shallow coves, and Iowa DNR points to wading as an effective way to reach them in spring; minnows or small jigs under a float.

Catfish (blue, channel) illustration

Catfish (blue, channel)

Year-round, best at dusk and after dark

Three big catfish share most of the country's rivers and reservoirs: the channel catfish, the most widespread; the blue catfish, the largest; and the flathead, which hunts live fish. All feed mostly on or near the bottom. In spring after ice-out, Iowa finds channel cats feeding on winter-killed shad on the shallow, warmer mudflats at the upper ends of reservoirs; cut bait on the bottom works there.

White bass illustration

White bass

Best: the spring run up the tributaries, then summer surface schools

A silvery temperate bass of rivers and large reservoirs, also called sand bass, that schools in open water after shad and runs up tributaries to spawn in early spring. The spring run happens in this band: tributaries, shoals and the upper ends of reservoirs as the water reaches about 55Β°F.

When to come: the Lake Freeman calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Largemouth bass
Crappie
Catfish (blue, channel)
White bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 63 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovNov, ~63 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Lake Freeman today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Sun, Nov 8

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Crappie led the card at excellent. High of 61 F, wind to 18 mph.

Sat, Nov 7

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Crappie led the card at good. High of 52 F, wind to 9 mph.

Fri, Nov 6

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Crappie led the card at good. High of 51 F, wind to 15 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Indiana requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Indiana license. Bass, crappie and catfish limits per current DNR regulations.

Access

Public ramps, marinas and cottage access around the lake near Monticello.

About this water

A 1,500-acre Tippecanoe River impoundment behind Oakdale Dam, Carroll and White counties, Indiana.

Fishing Lake Freeman: the full guide

A narrow river lake

Lake Freeman covers about 1,500 acres on the Tippecanoe River behind Oakdale Dam in Carroll and White counties, Indiana, a long narrow impoundment winding through wooded banks and cottage shoreline near Monticello. It holds largemouth and smallmouth bass, crappie, bluegill, catfish, walleye and white bass in a river-lake that fishes with current.

Bass along the shoreline

Largemouth relate to the seawalls, docks, wood and any vegetation along the developed shoreline, taken on plastics, jigs and spinnerbaits. Smallmouth work the rock and the current seams, particularly toward the upper end where the river enters. Current from generation at the dam positions fish along the structure predictably.

Crappie and catfish

Crappie hold the brush, docks and any submerged wood and are strongest in spring, taken on jigs and minnows. Channel and flathead catfish work the deeper holes and the river channel, best on cut and live bait at night. Walleye and white bass are present in modest numbers and concentrate near the dam.

White and Carroll county logistics

Public ramps serve the lake with marinas and cottage access along the shoreline, and Monticello provides services with Lafayette 30 minutes south. Summer brings heavy recreational boat traffic to this narrow water: fish early, late, or on weekdays. Lake Shafer sits immediately upstream as an alternative.

Common questions

Does current matter?

Yes: generation at the dam pushes current through this narrow lake and positions fish along the structure.

Is it busy?

Very, on summer weekends: it is a narrow lake with heavy recreational traffic. Fish early or midweek.

What is nearby?

Lake Shafer sits immediately upstream on the same river, offering a similar alternative.

Is fishing good at Lake Freeman right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.

Nearby waters

Wabash River22 miTippecanoe River23 miMississinewa Lake42 miSugar Creek49 miKankakee River54 miSalamonie Lake59 mi

Where this page's numbers come from

Weather and pressure
Open-Meteo forecast model
Queried at 40.7300, -86.7600 in this water's own timezone. A model, not an observation.
Moon and solunar windows
Calculated on this site
Astronomical calculation from these coordinates and the date, not a third-party feed. How much weight it deserves.
The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
How this page was made. The daily report is computed by our scoring engine from live readings; nobody types it. The written guide was drafted with AI assistance. Unlike our newer pages, it does not yet list the official pages its facts were checked against: that audit is under way, and anything it cannot verify will be taken out. Pablo Ruiz Quintero sets every guideline, the data-verification system and the minimum standards a page must meet to be published, reviews page structure and approves what goes live; the responsibility is his, and the AI carries out the work. We work this way because it is how one person can keep every page current with named sources. Errors are published in the verification log; the full policy is in the editorial policy.

Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on how our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.