Franklin Lake near Vanderhoof: Fishing Spots, Seasons and Access

• Overview

  Franklin Lake is a Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako water, in British Columbia. The surface lies 755 metres up. It runs to roughly 30 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The bank runs about 3.5 km all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. The town to know is Vanderhoof, 28 km out. Further out sit Fort St. James (58 km) and Prince George (60 km). The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Franklin Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. County-wide records name sockeye salmon, Coho salmon and Chinook salmon. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Franklin Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 15°C; the cold one sits at -11°C. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about mid April. Ice usually gives way near mid April, and forms again about mid November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Franklin Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. The nearest alternative is Webber Lake, 4.9 km out. Confirm access to Franklin Lake locally before you travel.