Army Corps reservoir

Lake Ouachita

Garland & Montgomery Counties, Arkansas

Lake Ouachita is Arkansas's largest lake, set in the Ouachita Mountains west of Hot Springs. The state manages it as a trophy striped bass lake, and it also holds good black bass, crappie, and walleye.

Air temp in Royal, AR Loading current temperature…

Red pins match the numbered boat launches below. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Current air temperature at Lake Ouachita (National Weather Service) ↗

Surface area40,000 acres

Max depth—

Shoreline—

Boat motorsCheck local rules

Species

Fishery rating out of 5.

Striped Bass●●●●●

Large live shad is the top bait for trophy stripers.

Largemouth Bass●●●●○

Weeds, docks and wood in the shallows.

Spotted Bass●●●○○

Rocky banks and bluff ends. Jigs and finesse plastics.

Crappie●●●○○

Brush piles, docks and standing timber. Minnows or small jigs.

Walleye●●●○○

Points, flats and reefs at low light. Jigs and live bait early, crankbaits and crawler harnesses in summer.

When they bite

Month-by-month activity for each target species.

	J	F	M	A	M	J	J	A	S	O	N	D
Striped Bass
Largemouth Bass
Spotted Bass
Crappie

SlowFairGoodHot

Boat launches

6 launch sites. Fees and hours change, so confirm before you go.

1Brady MountainFee
Corps and AGFC ramp 10 miles west of Hot Springs off US 270Directions ↗
2Crystal SpringsFee
Corps ramp 15 miles west of Hot Springs off US 270, $5Directions ↗
3Lake Ouachita State ParkPublic
State park ramp on Hwy 227 north of Mountain PineDirections ↗
4Lena LandingFree
AGFC ramp 1 mile south of Hwy 298, freeDirections ↗
5Twin CreekFree
AGFC ramp 25 miles west of Hot Springs off US 270, freeDirections ↗
More public accessPublic
See Arkansas Game & Fish or the lake manager's website for all ramps and feesDirections ↗

Size & creel limits

Special rules for this lake, confirmed from official state regulations. Minimum size and daily limit.

Species	Min size	Daily limit
Largemouth Bass Lake Ouachita; largemouth/smallmouth/spotted combined limit 6	13 in	6 / day combined
Spotted Bass In addition to the combined black bass limit, Lake Ouachita	See Arkansas rules book ↗	+10 / day
Striped Bass Lake Ouachita	See Arkansas rules book ↗	3 / day

Other species in this lake: look up the limits at Arkansas Game & Fish Commission ↗

Verified October 2026. Rules change, so confirm current limits with the Arkansas Game & Fish Commission before you fish.

Bait & tackle nearby

Closest shops to the lake and its boat launches. Call ahead for live bait and hours.

Lake Ouachita State Park MarinaNearby
5451 Mountain Pine Rd, Mountain Pine, AR(501) 767-9366 Directions ↗
Masterbaiters Bait & TackleNearby
3200 N State Hwy 7, Hot Springs Village, AR(501) 209-6538 Directions ↗

Search more bait shops near Lake Ouachita ↗

Local tips

Use big live shad for stripers, since trophy fish find them hard to resist.
The clear water favors lighter line and natural colors for bass.
The lake is large, so a local striper guide can save days of searching.

Angler reports

Water temp, what's biting, and anything else other anglers should know about Lake Ouachita.

Loading reports...

View on interactive map

Zoom and pan on a street, satellite or terrain map. Red pins are boat launches.