Melissa Lake in Cariboo Regional District: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Set in Cariboo Regional District, British Columbia, this is Melissa Lake. It sits in lake country bush country. With some 57 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The margin runs to about 6.1 km in total. Supplies mean a trip to 108 Mile Ranch, 81 km off. Williams Lake lies 83 km off, 100 Mile House another 90 km. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on Melissa 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. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Public occurrence data for Cariboo Regional District names sockeye salmon, Chinook salmon, bull trout, Coho salmon and longnose sucker. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Read Melissa Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 15°C, the coldest about -7°C. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around early April. Open water usually runs from early April until about late November. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. Plan any trip to Melissa Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Nothing built is recorded close to the bank here. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. If the gate is shut, Wolftrack Lake at 1.2 km is the nearest alternative. Treat access at Melissa Lake as something to verify.