Myrtle Grove Lake

Myrtle Grove Lake is a quiet 23-acre lake inside Myrtle Grove Wildlife Management Area, a 4,460-acre tract of forest and wetland west of La Plata in Charles County. The water is rich and weedy, with largemouth bass, bluegill, redear sunfish, black crappie and warmouth, and DNR stocks rainbow trout every spring and fall. A cool spring near the middle of the lake even lets a few trout hang on into summer. The WMA also has a 10-acre former quarry pond and several smaller ponds.

When to fish

• Spring and fall: trout right after the stockings; bass and crappie are active.
• Early summer: bass and sunfish before the weeds take over.
• Late summer and early fall: American lotus and hydrilla can make the lake hard to fish.

Where to fish

• The 23-acre lake, from shore or a small boat.
• The former quarry pond and the smaller ponds, which hold most of the same fish. The ponds that flood from Mattawoman Creek can also hold snakeheads; DNR asks anglers to remove any they catch, and it's illegal to keep one alive.

How to fish it

Plan around the weeds: the lake is easiest to fish before the lotus and hydrilla thicken in late summer. Statewide nontidal rules apply, and you need a trout stamp to fish for trout.

Getting there

The main entrance is on MD 225 about five miles west of La Plata, near Ripley, with more access along Bumpy Oak Road. The WMA is open every day, all year, with no fee, and has a small dirt launch. It's mainly a hunting area, so check which hunting seasons are open before you go. You need a Maryland nontidal fishing license.