In north-central Indiana, 245-acre Bruce Lake is known as a good bluegill producer. It straddles the Pulaski and Fulton line just north of state Route 14, and is located about nine miles east of Winamac. The maximum depth of the lake is 34 feet and the average depth is 14 feet. A public access site is on the northwest side of the lake.
Bluegills are not the only fish that can be caught through the ice, though. Lucky anglers can ice yellow perch, black and white crappies, largemouth bass, sunfish and even the occasional channel catfish. Northern pike were stocked many years ago, and muskies have been stocked for the past four years. Some of those muskies are now more than 40 inches long.
Bruce Lake was surveyed by the DNR in 2000 to analyze the fish populations and determine growth rates for individual species. A total of 23 species of fish were observed, and bluegills ranked first in abundance by number at 33 percent of the sample. Gizzard shad were second by number at 21 percent, followed by yellow perch and largemouth bass at 12 percent each.