Independent site — not affiliated with or endorsed by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) or the PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Official sources are linked on every page.
Northcentral region Tioga County
Cowanesque Lake covers 1,090 acres in Tioga County, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake. PFBC biologists last reported on it in April 2026. The 2026 advisory has no lake-specific row for it; the statewide one-meal-a-week advice applies.
Apr 2026 survey · this year
Gear: night electrofishing, boat electrofishing
PFBC Biologist Report: Cowanesque Lake (2026), p. 2
May 2021 survey · 5 years ago
Gear: gill nets, night electrofishing, boat electrofishing
PFBC's plan, in our words: PFBC plans regular Striped Bass stocking to build the population. (p. 2)
PFBC Biologist Report: Cowanesque Lake (2021), p. 2
Older PFBC reports on file: 2021 · 2017
Findings are our short summaries of one survey at one time. Every number was checked against the cited page of PFBC's report. We don't rate lakes.
Cowanesque Lake is not on PFBC's 2026 adult trout schedule (as published Oct 4, 2026).
No lake-specific advice for Cowanesque Lake in the 2026 list.
Statewide advice: “Pennsylvania has issued a general, statewide health advisory for recreationally caught sport fish: eat no more than one meal (1/2 pound) per week of sport fish caught in the state’s waterways.”
“People who regularly eat sport fish, women of childbearing age and children are particularly susceptible to contaminants that build up over time.”
DEP: “The advisory listing was current at the time this summary went to press. Fish consumption advisories may have been issued or lifted since that time.”
DEP fish consumption advisories Before you go: check DEP's harmful algal bloom page
Quoted word for word from the advisory for the year shown; advisories may have been issued or lifted since. Not medical advice.
No lake-specific program in PFBC's special-regulation data (Mar 2026). Commonwealth inland waters rules apply (2026 Fishing Summary, p. 10).
Summarized. The current Pennsylvania Fishing Summary, 58 Pa. Code and posted signs govern.
PFBC habitat-improvement map (PDF) — PFBC's map of fish-habitat structures placed or proposed in this lake.
Check posted rules and current conditions before you go.
On PFBC's ice-fishing destination list (retrieved Oct 4, 2026). Species PFBC lists for ice fishing here: Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, panfish, Muskellunge, Walleye.
This site has no ice reports; conditions change daily; never assume ice is safe.
Sponsored · advertiser-supplied · not verified by this site; not affiliated with or endorsed by PFBC
The 2026 advisory has no lake-specific row for Cowanesque Lake. The statewide advice — no more than one meal (1/2 pound) a week of sport fish — still applies. Not medical advice.
PFBC's April 2026 survey recorded: Walleye, Muskellunge. Surveys record what biologists caught with their gear on those days, not everything in the lake.
Sources for this page: PFBC Lakes_Point (Oct 4, 2026); PFBC biologist reports (area pages, Oct 4, 2026); PFBC adult trout schedule (as published Oct 4, 2026); DEP/PFBC fish consumption advisory (2026 list, updated Feb 27, 2026); PFBC special-regulation data (Mar 2026); 2026 Pennsylvania Fishing Summary. All sources
Last data import Oct 5, 2026