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Home › Waters › Oklahoma › Lake Hefner
Lake · Oklahoma County, a municipal water-supply lake in northwest Oklahoma City, surrounded by the city but fished seriously · Oklahoma

Lake Hefner Fishing Guides

An urban water-supply lake in northwest Oklahoma City with a genuine hybrid striper and walleye fishery, and a level gauge that matters in dry years.

An angler standing in a bass boat along a wooded reservoir shoreline
Gauge location. Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors.

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About the Lake Hefner

Lake Hefner sits in northwest Oklahoma City, ringed by parkland, a golf course, a trail system and the city beyond it. It was built in the 1940s as a municipal water supply, filled largely by transferred water rather than by its own modest drainage, and it remains a working reservoir first. None of which stops it from being one of the better urban fisheries in the state, and it is taken seriously by anglers who have no interest in the scenery.

It is a relatively deep, clear, open-water lake with limited natural cover, which shapes how it fishes. There is riprap along the dam and the shorelines, there are points and drop-offs, and there is a great deal of open water in between. That suits the pelagic predators, and the lake is managed accordingly: hybrid striped bass and walleye are stocked and provide much of the sport, chasing shad schools in open water rather than holding on cover. White bass do the same thing in a smaller way and can produce fast surface fishing when they push bait up.

The gauge reports lake level. In an ordinary year this is unremarkable, but Oklahoma runs through serious droughts and Hefner has been drawn down significantly in the worst of them, which changes ramp availability and shoreline access. Largemouth are present around the riprap and the marina structure, crappie hold on brush piles and the docks, and catfish are abundant and large. Wind is a genuine consideration: the lake is open, the Oklahoma wind is relentless, and a small boat can have an unpleasant day. Access is excellent, with multiple ramps, extensive public shoreline and a paved trail giving bank anglers more water than most city lakes offer.

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Read the full license

Version 1.0, dated 6 September 2026. Applies to every photograph submitted to GuidedFloats through the contact form, a species page, or the community board.

1. What you give us

By ticking the box on the form you grant Guided Floats, LLC (“GuidedFloats”, “we”) a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, copy, resize, crop and display your photograph on guidedfloats.com, in GuidedFloats’ own social media accounts and mobile apps, and in material that promotes the site itself, in connection with the fish, water or community feature you sent it in for. The license lasts until you withdraw it (section 4).

You keep the copyright. The license is not exclusive, so you can use the photo anywhere else and license it to anyone else. We will not sell your photo, license it on to anyone else on its own, or use it in paid advertising for a third party.

2. What you confirm

You confirm that you took the photograph yourself (or otherwise own the rights to it), that you have the right to grant this license, and that publishing the photo does not infringe anyone else’s copyright, privacy or other rights.

If any person is recognisable in the photo, you confirm that they have agreed to its being published here, and that a parent or guardian has agreed on behalf of anyone under 18. Please do not send photographs of other people’s catches, screenshots, or pictures copied from other websites or social media.

3. Credit

We print the credit name you give us beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, and record it as the photo’s creator in the page’s structured data. If you leave the credit blank we use the name you gave us on the form. Write “Anonymous” if you prefer no name at all. Your email address, phone number and the exact spot the photo was taken are never published.

4. Withdrawing the license

You can withdraw the license at any time by emailing hello@guidedfloats.com, or by using the contact form, and telling us which photo you mean. We will remove the photo from guidedfloats.com within 7 days of receiving your message and stop using it in anything new. Copies that are already outside our control — search-engine caches, social posts that have already gone out, printed material already produced — may take longer to disappear or may not be recallable, and we are not responsible for those.

5. What we may do

We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

6. Your details

We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

7. Versions

The version of this license you accepted is stored with your submission and printed with the photo. A later version does not apply to a photo you have already sent unless you agree to it.

Pool right now

  • Storage68,430 acre-ft

Reading taken 1h ago at USGS 07159550, Lake Hefner at Oklahoma City, OK. Elevation is the surface of the lake above the survey datum, not depth. Source.

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Reviewed by hand before it appears. Pick the water, not the spot — we never publish exact locations.

Never published. We use it only if we need to ask about the photo.

Posting to Lake Hefner.

JPG, PNG or WebP, up to 12 MB. We resize it and strip the location data out of the file.

The name shown under the photo. Leave blank to stay anonymous.

Reader photo license v1.0 — the short version:

  • You grant Guided Floats, LLC a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish, resize and crop your photo on guidedfloats.com and in GuidedFloats’ own social posts and apps. You keep the copyright and can use the photo anywhere else.
  • You confirm that you took the photo yourself, that publishing it does not infringe anyone else’s rights, and that anyone recognisable in it (or a parent or guardian, if they are under 18) is happy for it to appear here.
  • Credit is printed beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, using the credit name you give us. Leave it blank and we use your name; write “Anonymous” for no name. Your email address is never published.
  • Withdrawing is one email to hello@guidedfloats.com naming the photo. It comes off the site within 7 days.
Read the full license

Version 1.0, dated 6 September 2026. Applies to every photograph submitted to GuidedFloats through the contact form, a species page, or the community board.

1. What you give us

By ticking the box on the form you grant Guided Floats, LLC (“GuidedFloats”, “we”) a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, copy, resize, crop and display your photograph on guidedfloats.com, in GuidedFloats’ own social media accounts and mobile apps, and in material that promotes the site itself, in connection with the fish, water or community feature you sent it in for. The license lasts until you withdraw it (section 4).

You keep the copyright. The license is not exclusive, so you can use the photo anywhere else and license it to anyone else. We will not sell your photo, license it on to anyone else on its own, or use it in paid advertising for a third party.

2. What you confirm

You confirm that you took the photograph yourself (or otherwise own the rights to it), that you have the right to grant this license, and that publishing the photo does not infringe anyone else’s copyright, privacy or other rights.

If any person is recognisable in the photo, you confirm that they have agreed to its being published here, and that a parent or guardian has agreed on behalf of anyone under 18. Please do not send photographs of other people’s catches, screenshots, or pictures copied from other websites or social media.

3. Credit

We print the credit name you give us beside the photo wherever it appears on the site, and record it as the photo’s creator in the page’s structured data. If you leave the credit blank we use the name you gave us on the form. Write “Anonymous” if you prefer no name at all. Your email address, phone number and the exact spot the photo was taken are never published.

4. Withdrawing the license

You can withdraw the license at any time by emailing hello@guidedfloats.com, or by using the contact form, and telling us which photo you mean. We will remove the photo from guidedfloats.com within 7 days of receiving your message and stop using it in anything new. Copies that are already outside our control — search-engine caches, social posts that have already gone out, printed material already produced — may take longer to disappear or may not be recallable, and we are not responsible for those.

5. What we may do

We choose which photos to publish and may decline any submission without giving a reason. We may crop, resize, sharpen or colour-correct a photo for display, and we may remove a photo at any time. We will not alter a photo in a way that misrepresents the fish, the water or you.

6. Your details

We keep your name, email address, the credit name, the water and date you gave us, and the network address the submission came from, with the submission record, as our evidence of this license. We hold that record for as long as the photo is published and for the retention period described in our privacy policy. Location data that your camera or phone embedded in the file is removed before the photo is published.

7. Versions

The version of this license you accepted is stored with your submission and printed with the photo. A later version does not apply to a photo you have already sent unless you agree to it.

Access

Oklahoma City - the city surrounding the lake, with every service, tackle shop and lodging option.
Lake Hefner East Wharf - the developed area with ramps, parking, restaurants and shoreline access.
Stars and Stripes Park - the park on the eastern shore with bank fishing and trail access.
Lake Overholser - the older city lake to the southwest, shallower and more cover-oriented.
Lake Thunderbird - a larger reservoir southeast near Norman, offering a bigger-water alternative.
Stanley Draper Lake - the city lake to the southeast, known for catfish and hybrid stripers.
North Canadian River - the river running through the city, offering rough-and-ready alternative fishing.

Seasons

Spring: the strongest season, with hybrids and white bass schooling and largemouth moving onto the riprap.
Summer: fish go deep and open, with early-morning topwater on schooling hybrids the highlight of the day.
Fall: cooling water brings sustained surface activity as hybrids and whites drive shad up across open water.
Winter: walleye and crappie remain catchable in the deeper water, and the lake sees very little pressure.

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Questions

What species can you catch on the Lake Hefner?

Anglers target Black Crappie, Blue Catfish, Bluegill, Channel Catfish, Hybrid Striped Bass, Largemouth Bass, Saugeye, Striped Bass, Walleye, White Bass, White Crappie on the Lake Hefner in Oklahoma.

Where can you access the Lake Hefner?

Oklahoma City - the city surrounding the lake, with every service, tackle shop and lodging option. Lake Hefner East Wharf - the developed area with ramps, parking, restaurants and shoreline access. Stars and Stripes Park - the park on the eastern shore with bank fishing and trail access. Lake Overholser - the older city lake to the southwest, shallower and more cover-oriented. Lake Thunderbird - a larger reservoir southeast near Norman, offering a bigger-water alternative. Stanley Draper Lake - the city lake to the southeast, known for catfish and hybrid stripers. North Canadian River - the ri...

When is the best time to fish the Lake Hefner?

Spring: the strongest season, with hybrids and white bass schooling and largemouth moving onto the riprap. Summer: fish go deep and open, with early-morning topwater on schooling hybrids the highlight of the day. Fall: cooling water brings sustained surface activity as hybrids and whites drive shad up across open water. Winter: walleye and crappie remain catchable in the deeper water, and the lake sees very little pressure.

Where are the fishing regulations for the Lake Hefner?

Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Oklahoma agency site: https://www.wildlifedepartment.com/fishing/regs