When you first start heading up the road from the bottom, you will be going up
the "grade". This is about an 8 percent grade on the side of a hill. So keep an eye
out for rocks in the road. Once at the lake, you'll find camping spots on the west
side of the lake with tables and a few covered areas, and restrooms, (outhouses).
You will need to make sure to purchase a Washington Discovery Pass to camp
and park in the DNR camp ground.
Hard to say how busy the lake will be, but it’s a location that a lot of fly anglers
like to go to just to relax and do a little fishing. Personally, this a one of those
places where you can go and just sit back and slow down. Evenings are spent
around the camp fire swapping stories about past trips, future trips or just good
hearted conversations with fellow members of our sport.
The next popular lake in our area for fly anglers is Blue Lake in the Sinlahekin
Valley, located northeast of Omak. Last year’s wildfires in the area came close to
Blue Lake, but did not reach it. Lake elevation is 1690ft. and surface acreage is
205. There are campsites on the eastside of the lake. This Blue Lake is under the
Selective Gear rules. Boats are allowed but only electric motors are approved.
You will find rainbows and browns up to 18". The roads into the lake should be
no problem. As a side trip, you might want to venture up the valley and check
out Forde or Conner Lake. These two lakes are under the general rules, but offer
you the chance for a mix of Tiger trout or brook trout.
Big Twin Lake, southwest of Winthrop, is another lake that offers some great
springtime fishing. It is a small lake at only 61 acres. When I first moved to the
Methow Valley, Big Twin Lake was one of my go to lake for some great stillwater
fishing. It was not uncommon the catch rainbows 18" to 20"+. Then back in the
late 90's, the level of the lake dropped almost 20'. Had to do with something
about the local irrigation ditch going from an open ditch to a closed pipe system.