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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
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    jackson
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    553

    Fishing High Mountain Lakes: School Me

    Whaddya got?

    I'm curious about lakes that are stocked vs. those that support a trout population year after year. Good ways of determining whether the high mountain lake actually holds fish or not?

    Fishing during melt-off, after, etc...

    Techniques/sub-surface vs. dry, etc.

    And anything else you wanna share. Me = gaper

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
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    Splat's Garage
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    High mountain lakes are probably the easiest place to catch trout. Hit it at the right time of day and they'll bite a piece of bark off your hook.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
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    the ex-Motor City
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    General rule of thumb (and statement of the obvious)...

    Fish that never see a hook are the easiest to catch.
    "Those 1%ers are not an avaricious "them" but in reality the most entrepreneurial of "us". If we had more of them and fewer grandstanding politicians, we would all be better off."
    - Bradley Schiller, Prof. of Economics, Univ. Nevada - Reno.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2007
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    jackson
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    553
    Quote Originally Posted by flatNshallow View Post
    General rule of thumb (and statement of the obvious)...

    Fish that never see a hook are the easiest to catch.
    makes sense...

    but if there are no fish in the lake to begin with...I suppose my #1 question is determining whether or not there are fish in the lake

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Posts
    137
    I know of one good way to find out!

    They are not always easy to catch either, especially the big ones. Timing is everything. I've humped a float tube with a full pack up 2,000 feet, can't say I'd recommend it. But figuring it out yourself can produce stories worthy of your grand kids.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Mammoth Lakes
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    45
    lakes with spawning areas (for anything other than brookies) are a good bet. brookies can spawn in the lake and dont need moving water. they are damn near cockroach status up here. and hell throw anything at them. catch em on poppers... tarpon flys...chihuahuas on a hook... anything tied to a hook... it almost gets boring.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    on the rivah, VT
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    2,190
    Quote Originally Posted by SPARTICUS View Post
    it almost gets boring.
    Almost, until you realize that you're finding yourself in places like these:


    Catchin fishes like these:




    Dunno, maybe it's the right coaster in me, but I don't think that's too terribly boring.
    go Go GO!

    23-24: 36. 22-23: 56. 21-22: ?. 20-21: 10+?. 19-20: 79. 18-19: 86! 17-18: 80. 16-17: 56. 15-16: 40. 14-15: 33. 13-14: 56ish. 12-13: 51. 11-12: 65. 10-11: 69. 09-10: 65.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    la la land
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    5,801
    For big cutts in high alpine lakes prepare to be SKOOL'd.
    `•.¸¸.•´><((((º>`•.¸¸.•´¯`•.¸.•´¯`•...¸><((((º>

    "Having been Baptized by uller his frosty air now burns my soul with confirmation. I am once again pure." - frozenwater

    "once i let go of my material desires many opportunities for playing with the planet emerge. emerge - to come into being through evolution. ok back to work - i gotta pack." - Slaag Master

    "As for Flock of Seagulls, everytime that song comes up on my ipod, I turn it up- way up." - goldenboy

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Aug 2009
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    Splat's Garage
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    4,185
    I think fishing high alpine lakes is one of the best things you can do on Earth.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Recovering Jackson-holic (Denver)
    Posts
    503
    Pat, I can probably just call, but I will be a cool TGR guy today. Every time I do that Wind River trip and decide to fish a new lake I call the park rangers. Do some research, find a cool looking place to fish/camp, and call the local ranger's office. They will have information from when the lake was last stocked, what was stocked, key food sources for the fish, and how the trout population has grown or shrunk...aka fish kills. Most rangers and park's people are super friendly and don't mind sharing information as long as you have done a little of your own research. (Not calling and asking "where do I fish?") Right after melt off on lakes can be super money when trout haven't seen a fly all winter, but as the summer progresses you can get some fun dry action. I have found it a blast to go with a friend (I'll be up soon to visit and want to go rip lip!) and have one person spot fish trolling the banks and yelling out directions to another person fishing. Later in the summer you can have a great time spotting trolling trout and throwing terrestrial patterns. Also throwing scuds and bead nymphs and stripping can do work wonders. Let's talk and I can give you a list of good lakes that I know you are willing to put some work in for.

    And go catch some football size brookies!
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    "Figure if I study high, take the test high, I'll get high scores..." -Redman

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Location
    Mammoth Lakes
    Posts
    45
    Quote Originally Posted by akokskis View Post
    Almost, until you realize that you're finding yourself in places like these:


    Catchin fishes like these:



    Dunno, maybe it's the right coaster in me, but I don't think that's too terribly boring.
    Agreed, was simply referring to the fishing... i find myself taking in the scenery more than fishing after about the 30th or 40th brookie...

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    Vail, CO
    Posts
    171
    I tried fishing some high mountain lakes in the Flattops over this last weekend and didn't catch shit. Tried streamers, dries, and some nymphs and tiny midges. One lake in particular looked perfect, but all I saw was little tiny 2-3 inch fingerlings along the banks. Everywhere you walked near the shore, there were a bunch in packs of 10-30 tiny fish. I don't know if this was a good sign or a bad sign. Assuming no one stocked this lake recently, would that indicate that there is a larger population of decent sized fish, or that perhaps that lake only supports these little tiny guys? Other than standing above a lake and seeing decently sized trout in the shallows, how else can you determine if a lake holds decent sized trout?

    To be fair, it was crazy windy and I was fishing in the middle of the day with bright skies and little cloud cover.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
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    prb
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    1,423
    spin rods seem to work better in the high mtn lakes. just sayin in case you are planning on fish for dinner and don't want to starve.
    looking for a good book? check out mine! as fast as it is gone

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    western Colorado
    Posts
    21
    For what it is worth-Two weeks ago(early June) I was fishing high mtn lake at 10,000 ft, western colorado. Saw schools of nice sized, brightly colored cutthroat (12 to 16") cruising the shoreline in packs of 5 to 8 fish only 3 to 10' from shore. Tried a lot of flies (prince, SJ worm, etc)with no interest from the fish. They didn't spook;they just swam around my flies and continued on. The same packs would return periodically so they had a regular route. In talking with more experienced fly fisherman, they said I should have tried midges, ants, or beetles. These fish were on the end of the lake toward which the breeze had been blowing so maybe they were looking to collect insects that had blown up against the shore?

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Jun 2016
    Posts
    1
    Fishing In Mountain Lake Wow Just Awesome!!
    But You wanna Catch More Fish you have to use a amazing fish finder.
    Check out My Step By step guide from my fishing blog.

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Mar 2016
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    Warm parts of the St. Vrain
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    2,782
    From my limited failings I'd say try to have some plan for getting yourself away from the bank, at least a little, especially with a fly rod.

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Eburg
    Posts
    13,243
    Six years ago wife and I started high lakes fishing. We use lightweight spinning gear and have caught hundreds of cutts and brookies (and a few rainbows) in WA, MT and WY. We have had the most luck with Jake's Spin-a-Lure and Super Duper lures.

    Most states have resources re stocked lakes (species, year stocked) and lakes with self-sustaining populations (species, abundance).

    If you're fishing the Beartooth-Absaroka Wilderness, get a copy of the most recent edition of Fishing the Beartooths by Pat Marcuson.

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Feb 2005
    Location
    EMPIRE, COLORADO
    Posts
    37
    Red & White Daredevils during the day & Flies drug along behind a Clear Plastic bubble on about a 3' leader when they are hitting the surface. tie a barrel swivel below the bubble after you fill it 1/3 to 1/2 full of water to cast. Ultralight Spinning Rigs work pretty good at High Mountain Lakes.
    When I was a 12 yo Kid (I'm 53) , my Aunt & Uncle took me up to camp at Maroon Lake outside Aspen. This was back when you could camp right along the shore and cross over to the other side on the log jam (the side in the Post Cards). A Summer Snowstorm hit and the fish went absolutely BATSHIT! I was catching one 14"-16" fish after the other on a Red & White Daredevil till my reel jammed up. So I just pulled the line and lure in by hand and hooked one by hand and landed it. A rich Guy all duded up in Orvis with his Fly Rod couldn't catch shit and I remember him yelling at his Wife to "go over there for Christsakes and see what that damned Kid is using" and I yelled back across the Lake "my hands".
    Next day I lost the biggest Trout of my Life (to this day) on my Uncles Rod. It came up and did a big jump shaking like Elvis and threw the Lure.

  19. #19
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    A LSD Steakhouse somewhere in the Wasatch
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    13,234
    my advice is don't fish em low
    "When the child was a child it waited patiently for the first snow and it still does"- Van "The Man" Morrison
    "I find I have already had my reward, in the doing of the thing" - Buzz Holmstrom
    "THIS IS WHAT WE DO"-AML -ski on in eternal peace
    "I have posted in here but haven't read it carefully with my trusty PoliAsshat antenna on."-DipshitDanno

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Apr 2012
    Posts
    143
    ^^^Nice

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