Cayuta Lake is an approximately 380 acre lake located in southeastern Schuyler County about three miles northeast of Odessa. Much of the shore line is privately owned with several private seasonal campgrounds and year round and seasonal homes and cottages.
Physical Features:
Elevation: 1,317 feet
Area: 380 acres
Shoreline Length: 4 miles
Length: 2 miles
Max Depth: 26 feet
Mean Depth: 14 feet
County and Town: Schuyler County, Town of Catharine
Aquatic Plant Life:
Cayuta Lake contains a heavy growth of submerged aquatic vegetation along most all shoreline areas, but especially in the shallow water near the south end of the lake.
Access:
A state boat launch is located on the north end of Cayuta Lake on Loch Heid Road off of Cayutaville Road. There is a concrete ramp, seasonal dock, canoe/kayak launch, and parking for 15 cars and trailers.
For more information on this launch including Google Maps driving directions, visit the Boat Launch Sites for Schuyler County page.
Accessible Features
From the Lock Heid Road Parking Area, wheelchair accessible features include the:
- Trailered boat launch with dock; and
- Hand boat launch with dock and kayak slide
Visit the DEC Accessible Recreation Destinations web page for additional accessible recreation opportunities.
Fish Species:
Walleye, chain pickerel, largemouth bass, yellow perch, bluegill, pumpkinseed, black crappie, rock bass, brown bullhead, chubsucker, golden shiner, white sucker, common carp.
Fishing:
Cayuta Lake, sometimes referred to as Little Lake, provides excellent warmwater fishing opportunities. Largemouth bass and chain pickerel are the primary predators found in the lake. A recent angler survey revealed largemouth bass 5 lbs and larger are occasionally caught. In addition to bass and pickerel, walleye populations provide added diversity to angler catches. In the past, a small, naturally occurring population has periodically been supplemented with hatchery reared fish resulting in a sizeable walleye fishery. However, an abundant alewife population has negatively impacted both walleye recruitment and angler success for walleye with only a few anglers catching an occasional large walleye. More recently, a research project looking at controlling alewife populations from a predator level resulted in the stocking of over 250,000 walleye fingerlings over a 5 year period ending in 2006. Although the desired results have not yet been achieved, these fish have reached the 18 inch minimum size limit and are quite abundant, but still difficult to catch. Bluegills, yellow perch, and black crappie are plentiful and dominate the panfish catch. In addition to the open water fishery, excellent ice fishing opportunities exist within Cayuta Lake with anglers targeting pickerel and panfish species.
Concentrate on structure and vegetation when fishing for largemouth bass and panfish. Spinner baits, jerk baits, crayfish, plastic worms, grubs, and tube baits work well for catching bass. Walleye fishing is most productive in the spring during early morning and evening hours. Drift or troll slowly with spinner and worm harness combinations or with stick baits such as rebels or rapalas. Drifting or casting jigs tipped with worms or minnows also works well. During the winter try ice fishing with tip-ups baited with small minnows or jigging with spoons (like Swedish pimples) tipped with spikes, mousies or a minnow head.
Ice Fishing:
Ice Fishing is permitted on Cayuta Lake.
