Mooto Lake, British Columbia: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Mooto Lake is a Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine water, British Columbia side. The bank gives way to farm and woodlot. The water covers around 6.72 sq km, which puts most of it out of reach from the bank. There is roughly 24 km of bank, more than one visit can cover properly. Size puts it in the front rank of our Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine list. You are 58 km from Bella Bella. Bella Coola lies 89 km off, Kitimat another 160 km. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on Mooto Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Regional District of Kitimat-Stikine records list pink salmon, Chum salmon, Coho salmon, sockeye salmon and Chinook salmon among the fish reported. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. On Mooto Lake the first feature you find is usually worth a session.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 14°C in August and bottom out at 0°C in January. The swings are modest, so patterns change slowly. In a normal year the cover is thin and short-lived. November and March are the quiet, comfortable months to be out. Mooto Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. No slipway, car park or made path shows up nearby in mapping, so treat access as rough. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Ingram Lake at 5.1 km is the sensible second choice. None of that is settled for Mooto Lake in what we hold.