Are there any private membership lakes in your area?

[Biglittle8]

Don't know of any in this area, but it would be interesting to fish a private lake that had very little fishing pressure.

[roadwarrior]

On 4/5/2021 at 4:02 PM, soflabasser said:

I much rather catch my bass from public waters. 

Well, you guys have a lot of options.

 

[Dwight Hottle]

19 hours ago, N Florida Mike said:

We have Bienville plantation around 70 miles away. I went there once with a member. I think the area he had paid to fish was 800 a year, and that was the cheapest they had. It was a really interesting place to fish. It was extremely easy to get turned around in there. Islands, channels that connected one body of water to another. My friend ( who had fished it a lot ) got turned around consistently all day. It was absolutely the murkiest water Ive ever fished. I think we caught 3 fishing hard all day. And they werent over a pound. The only boat we passed  had almost a limit of nice specks at least.

At the end of the day my friend said he didnt think he was going to renew.

I couldn’t say I blamed him.

 

Mike I went there once with three friends on our way back from fishing in GA. Like you I was not impressed nothing of size.  

[JustJames]

There is one membership lake I wanted to join but my wife say no. It is Lytle creek lake. This is type of resort lake where you can park RV and small lake to fish from. They stock mostly trout.

[TheBasslayer]

In Michigan, I don't really see any pay-to-fish lakes around me. Michigan has some good public waters IMO. I am glad that the lakes around here are public because if they weren't, I would be pretty screwed!

[N Florida Mike]

5 hours ago, Dwight Hottle said:

 

Mike I went there once with three friends on our way back from fishing in GA. Like you I was not impressed nothing of size.  

They said it was once an amazing fishery. Many of the older greats of bass fishing have fished there. Maybe it’s still good in some of the lakes.

[NoShoes]

On 4/6/2021 at 3:39 PM, GreenPig said:

There's a 200 acres mill pond that's $200 a year 150 miles from my house. A third of it appears to be flooded Cypress trees. I've been considering joining for a couple years and likely will this year. It's trophy managed(C & R) for LM and is electric only. Huge difference from the deep clears water I usually fish.

I know that lake. I wouldn’t recommend it. Especially wouldn’t recommend driving that far to it. 

[schplurg]

Sounds like shooting fish in a barrel. Doesn't sound fun to me but I've never fished a place like that. Maybe once would be fun. For the price though, no way never.

[DaubsNU1]

Never heard of a place like that in my part of the country. 

 

I do know guys that pay big $$$ for waterfowl leases, deer lease, and some pay to hunt pheasants...but never to catch fish. 

 

Interesting concept...

[GreenPig]

2 hours ago, NoShoes said:

I know that lake. I wouldn’t recommend it. Especially wouldn’t recommend driving that far to it. 

Thanks for the info. 

[rtwvumtneer6]

On 4/5/2021 at 4:23 PM, WVU-SCPA said:

Only membership trout streams around me.

Same.  They shoot pellets out of feeders and the trout swarm.  Guys make lures that mimic the food and stand there and wait until the feeder goes off.

 

Kind of neat to see, but I don't see the "sport" in it.  

[Bankc]

I'm not aware of any, but there is a Sportsman Lake and a Sportsman Club lake.  I assume these were at one time.  But Sportsman lake is now public and Sportsman Club lake is owned by the Chickasaw Nation.  They just recently bought it and are turning the old clubhouse into a community center.  Don't know what they'll do with the lake, but it's been neglected for decades.

 

I think there's just too many public lakes to make a private club lake profitable here.

[David 7]

No but the lake in my town is residential, tons of homes on the shoreline with very limited public access. The only public access is a DEC long fishing pier which is quite the walk while car topping. I really shouldn’t complain though as there is an abundance of great public waters here in upstate NY.

[Basstagger]

Well I'm the spoiled one cause I live on a 210 Private lake and it gets fished by less than  a dozen people- might see one other guy fishing on some days. The HOA actually spent over $15,000 four years ago to have it stocked with Largemouth Bass, Crappie, and Sunfish. I just retired and am now on a mission to catch a double digit Bass. I have started to tag every Bass I catch and write down the details- Tag#, date, Weight, Length and Approx Location I catch it. I wonder how long it will take to catch a bass I tagged?

[MN Fisher]

MN:

Private lakes? Yes - when there's no public land adjoining the water, the lake is private to the homeowners. Some will give you permission to shore-fish, so long as you stay in the boundaries of their property. Note that a bridge of a city/county/state maintained road counts as public land.

 

Any public land adjoining a lake, the lake is public.

[Deephaven]

All lakes in MN are required to have access.  Some may be across homeowner land but available for entry.  

[MN Fisher]

20 minutes ago, Deephaven said:

All lakes in MN are required to have access.  Some may be across homeowner land but available for entry.  

On paper that's true - but when a lake is totally enclosed by private property...try getting permission to cross to the lake from one of the homeowners.

 

It's like trying to pull the teeth of an un-sedated lion.

[gim]

20 minutes ago, Deephaven said:

All lakes in MN are required to have access.  Some may be across homeowner land but available for entry.  

So how do you access it if you have to trespass to get there then?  I'm not about to walk across someone's property without asking them.  I always thought that there had to be a public land access point on a body of water for it to be "public" as @MN Fisher previously stated.  When I was duck hunting a large pond many years ago the only spot I could gain access was through the back yard of private property because the entire thing was surrounded by privately owned land.

[J Francho]

Most often here, there is an easement. 

[TnRiver46]

19 hours ago, Basstagger said:

Well I'm the spoiled one cause I live on a 210 Private lake and it gets fished by less than  a dozen people- might see one other guy fishing on some days. The HOA actually spent over $15,000 four years ago to have it stocked with Largemouth Bass, Crappie, and Sunfish. I just retired and am now on a mission to catch a double digit Bass. I have started to tag every Bass I catch and write down the details- Tag#, date, Weight, Length and Approx Location I catch it. I wonder how long it will take to catch a bass I tagged?

Nothing is lucky about living in an HOA……. 
 

just kidding (kind of), sounds like a cool lake anyhow 

[Deephaven]

15 hours ago, MN Fisher said:

On paper that's true - but when a lake is totally enclosed by private property...try getting permission to cross to the lake from one of the homeowners.

 

It's like trying to pull the teeth of an un-sedated lion.

Indeed, but the owner has no choice if you push it.  There is some acreage requirement on that though.

[Basstagger]

Well, I'm spoiled and please don't hate me. I live on a private 200 acre lake and it gets very little fishing pressure. I found this place in the middle of no where land South Carolina when I was planning retirement. I think I could start a new business with the prices people have to pay for these places. Everyone that sees the lake wants to know how they can get in to fish.

[king fisher]

A friend told me about a lake with giant bass then showed me picture of his wife with one well over 10 pounds

        I went to check it out and there were signs no fishing allowed.  I was gong to leave but decided I would talk to a man loading his truck.  I asked him if it was OK to fish if I let the bass go.  He told me he was the manager of the lake and I was welcome to fish as long as I killed any bass I catch.  I was not allowed to keep tilapia.  Only a few people had limmited permits to commercial fish for Tilapia, and they want the illegally planted bass gone.

        The lake is a big bass paradise that I have practically to myself and I don’t have to pay a dime.  My friend who told me about the lake fishes salt water and only goes bass fishing a couple times a year. I don’t know how much money they make off of the tilapia but I would wager the double digit bass are worth more.

[Jmilburn76]

I have one local to me that you have to be invited by current member then be placed on a waiting list and its not even a big lake. The crazy thing is literally across the street is a public lake around the same size. 

[tommy2609]

I own a lot on a private lake/pond and there are only 20 shares for lake access.....No more will ever be granted per the association.  Been that way since the mid 50's when the creek was dammed up to create the pond.  The body of water is 4500 ft by 850 ft (or about 100 acers).  The water and 20 ft around it were incorporated.  There are 17 homes on the lake (our new home will be the 18th - foundation in - framing to start next week).  One family owns several of the shares so not all the homes have a "lake share" so they can enjoy the view but can't access the water or have a dock.  We got really lucky when this lot/share came up for sale by owner last year.  We had to pay up but it was the last lot that does not have anything on it.  Wifey and I built a 90ft dock the first month.  The elderly lady that sold us the lot/share unfortunately lost her husband to illness in 2019 and she decided to sell it.  Back in 2005 he caught a 13lb 4oz bass in this lake and that is the biggest fish that was actually weighed and pictures taken.  She showed me the pics of that fish and a bunch of others he caught over the years.  The 13lb'er looked like a 5 gallon bucket.  It was a beast.  All of the fish he caught were released.  I have been fishing in this little lake for the past 14 months since we bought the lot and the biggest fish I actually landed was right a 7 lbs.  I grew up on Lake Wylie and have been fishing for 40 years and never caught the volume/size of fish like I have during that time and I released all of them.  I have not taken out a single fish.  Today I caught a 4lb'er   Oh yeah, almost forgot, no association fee........The 20 shares split the $6500 per year tax and insurance....pinch me.  Pics are of the lot from the dock we built from last summer......From the deep end where the dam is facing to the back.....and a sunset looking due west.  Again, pinch me.