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Water Body
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Lake Atkins |
PDF Map
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Location
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Southeast Pope County,
just south of Atkins |
AGFC Interactive Map
Directions
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District Information
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Fisheries District 9
1266 Lock and Dam Road
Russellville, AR 72802 |
Bob Limbird
blimbird@agfc.state.ar.us
1-877-967-7577 |
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Size
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752 acres |
Constructed: 1956 |
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Regulations
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Click here to view specific regulations pertaining to this lake.
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Ownership
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Lake Ashbaugh is owned by the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. |
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Major Sportfish
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Bluegill, channel catfish, crappie, flathead catfish, largemouth bass, redear sunfish |
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Other Fish
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Blue catfish, bowfin, bullhead, common carp, grass carp, grass pickerel, green sunfish, longear sunfish, spotted bass, warmouth |
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Fish Forage
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Shad, small sunfish |
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Visible Cover
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Cypress trees, standing dead timber, stumps, willows, buckbrush |
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Depth
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Average depth 10 feet; maximum depth 35 feet |
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Bottom Features
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Mud bottom with remnants of timber cutting |
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Aquatic Vegetation
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Pondweed, slimy lily, coontail |
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Facilities
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A southside bait shop offers boat and motor rentals, campsites with water and electric hookups, restrooms, rental cabins and fishing supplies. The Atkins city park on the northeast corner features a pavilion and picnic facilities. The lake also sports a fishing pier, four fishing jetties, five concrete boat ramps, two shale boat ramps and several primitive lakeside camping areas. Motels and restaurant are available in Atkins. |
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Access
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Lake
Atkins
is accessible from roads off Arkansas Highways 105 and 324. These roads are reached by turning south at Interstate 40's Exit 94 at Atkins. Highway signs direct travelers to the lake.
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Description
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Lake Atkins sits in the fertile Arkansas River Valley just south of it namesake, the town that made pickles famous. The lake itself is best known for its crackerjack bream fishing. The water teams with huge bluegills and redear sunfish. Visiting anglers will also find topnotch fishing for big crappies, largemouth bass, channel catfish and flathead catfish. The lake is fertilized annually to increase the size and numbers of fish it produces and is considered by many to be the best small-lake fishery in western Arkansas.
Lake Atkins was the first Arkansas lake partially financed under the Dingell-Johnson Act with funds from federal excise taxes on fishing equipment. Built on Horsepen and Ten Yard creeks, the lake is jam-packed with snags, stumps, brush and logs providing excellent fish habitat. Boat lanes are cut through the timber in places, but boaters should watch for submerged stumps and logs. Four fishing jetties jut into the lake allowing bankfishermen better access to prime fishing spots. |
Other Points
of Interest |
Other outdoor attractions in the area include Galla Creek Wildlife Management Area just to the southwest off Arkansas 105, Holla Bend National Wildlife Refuge across the Arkansas River to the south and Dardanelle Lock & Dam on the Arkansas River at Russellville.
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Restaurants, Camping
and other Facilities
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Restaurants, motels and other amenities are available in nearby Russellville and Dardanelle. |
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Images
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