Jul 23, 2016 3 min read

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission recently completed a survey of High Point Lake, which is located not far off Route 40 in Somerset County, just on the other side of the Youghiogheny Reservoir.

While there was some good news in terms of the largemouth bass population, the news wasn’t so great walleye.

The 338-acre lake – about five times the size of Canonsburg Lake – is just west of Mount Davis, the highest point in the state, and a little over an hour from Washington. It offers naturally reproducing populations of a number of fish, including northern pike, largemouth and smallmouth bass, yellow perch, brown bullhead and a variety of panfish.

Chain pickerel also were introduced into the lake and are now naturally reproducing. The commission encourages anglers to harvest all legal-sized chain pickerel in the lake.

In addition to those game species, the commission stocked fingerling walleye in the lake in previous years, though that practice will be discontinued following the findings of the survey.

Trap nets yielded an abundance of panfish in the lake, but there also were some nice gamefish found as well.

Nine largemouth bass turned up – even though the nets don’t target that species – ranging in size from 15 to 19 inches. There were three northern pike that found their way into the nets, ranging in size from 23 to 33 inches in length, with two chain pickerel found, one nine inches in length, the other 19.

The trap nets also yielded some nice-sized bullheads, with 35 brown bullheads, ranging from 10 to 15 inches, and nine yellowheads, ranging from 10 to 12 inches, being measured.

Four walleye, ranging in size from 21 to 25 inches, were found, making them all legal fish.

Night electrofishing for gamefish yielded even better results.

This year’s survey turned up 291 largemouth bass, nearly five times as many as the most recent survey of the lake, which was conducted in 2007. Those fish ranged in size from five to 19 inches.

Electrofishing also turned up 18 smallmouths, eight northern pike and six chain pickerel. The smallmouths were four to 10 inches; the northerns 22 to 28 inches; the chain pickerel 17 to 20 inches.

The downside in the increase in largemouth bass is it appears to be coming at the expense of the walleye population.

A second netting was conducted in late March during the walleye spawn when they would be closer to shore. That netting yielded just six walleye, ranging in size from 20 to 22 inches.

That being the case, the commission determined it no longer will stock fingerling walleye in the lake.

Despite that, if you’re looking for a good bass lake close to home, High Point would certainly fit the bill. And you might even hook a chain pickerel or northern pike, as well.

• Washington County recently received one of the new graduates of the 21st class of the H.R. Stackhouse School of Fishery Conservation and Watercraft Safety classes.

Waterways Conservation Officer David Raulfs, Jr., a native of Allentown, was assigned to Washington County following graduation. He’s one of 18 new officers assigned to districts across the state.

Westmoreland County also picked up a new WCO, as Daniel Wilson of Dravosburg was assigned to handle that area.

Outdoors Editor F. Dale Lolley can be reached at dlolley@observer-reporter.com.