Lake Corpus Christi fishing: Rainbow Trout, Largemouth Bass, Striped Bass

Target species: Rainbow Trout, Largemouth Bass, Striped Bass, Walleye, White Bass, Channel Catfish, Bluegill

The lake

Lake Corpus Christi covers 18,072 acres in Texas, across 3 counties: Live Oak, San Patricio and Jim Wells. It is a lake: 92.3% of it is 18 feet deep or less; the deepest point measured is 53.5 feet (16.3 m). Our records hold 11 species for this water.

Lake corpus christi view.jpg
Larry D. Moore · CC BY 4.0

7 target fish, led by Rainbow Trout

  • Rainbow Trout — Feeding water: 50–65°F.
  • Largemouth Bass — Feeding water: 65–85°F.
  • Striped Bass — Feeding water: 60–75°F.
  • Walleye — Feeding water: 50–75°F.
  • White Bass — Feeding water: 65–75°F.
  • Channel Catfish — Feeding water: 70–85°F.
  • Bluegill — Feeding water: 70–85°F.

Also recorded here: Sunshine Bass, Common Carp, Grass Carp, Blue Tilapia.

Lake corpus christi sp pier.jpg
Larry D. Moore · CC BY 4.0

Stocking: 10,154,692 fish, 1994–2026

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department records list 10,154,692 fish released into this water from 1994 to 2026.

Lake Corpus Christi during sunset, the reservoir capacity is 26% in this photo.jpg
SoggyTo · CC0
  • Walleye: 2,000,000 in 1973
  • Striped Bass: 1,247,559 in 1981–1990
  • Channel Catfish: 518,330 in 1972–2026
  • Rainbow Trout: 52,736 in 2005–2024

4 more species on the stocking list.

Depth: down to 53.5 ft at the deepest measured point

Deepest measured point: 53.5 ft (16.3 m). 92.3% of the water is 18 feet or shallower.

  • 0–3 ft: 12.7% of the water
  • 3–6 ft: 12.5% of the water
  • 6–9 ft: 17.4% of the water
  • 9–12 ft: 21.7% of the water
  • 12–15 ft: 21.1% of the water
  • 15–18 ft: 6.9% of the water
  • 18–21 ft: 2.7% of the water
  • 21–24 ft: 3% of the water
  • 24–27 ft: 1.5% of the water
  • 27–30 ft: 0.2% of the water
  • 30–33 ft: 0.1% of the water
  • 33–36 ft: 0.1% of the water
  • 36–39 ft: 0.1% of the water

Water and conditions

Our water temperature readings average 74°F; they do not cover the whole year, so this is not a yearly average. pH averages 8.2. These readings span 2018–2020. The latest reading is from 2020, more than three years ago: read these numbers as history, not as the water today.

What is hard here

Wind is the limit, not the fish: 18,072 acres of open water build a short steep chop, and there is no shelter in the middle.

Where this data comes from

  • Texas Water Development Board — Texas Water Development Board: depth contours: class A, a survey of the bottom, 2015.
  • Webster, K.E., McCullough, I.M., Soranno, P.A. LAGOS-US DEPTH v1.0, EDI, doi:10.6073/pasta/64ddc4d04661d9aef4bd702dc5d8984f (CC BY 4.0); Cheruvelil et al. LAGOS-US LOCUS v1.0 (EDI) — LAGOS-US DEPTH v1.0: Lake depth for 17,675 lakes in the conterminous U.S.: class B, a depth figure measured and published by an agency, without a bottom map.