Brucejack Lake, British Columbia: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Brucejack Lake lies in Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine, British Columbia. The water sits 1,363 metres up. It measures about 77 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Some 5.6 km of bank gives room to move when the wind turns. The nearest town is Wrangell, 135 km away. Kamloops sits 915 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Brucejack Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Open biodiversity records for Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine list pink salmon, Chum salmon, Coho salmon, sockeye salmon and Chinook salmon. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. The shape of Brucejack Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 6°C; the cold one sits at -10°C. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near early June. Break-up near early June, freeze-up near late October: that is the shape of an average year. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. It sets the rhythm of the year at Brucejack Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Goldpan Lake, 2.2 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Ask locally about Brucejack Lake if anything is unclear.