Upper Halgrave Lake Fishing near Radium Hot Springs, British Columbia

• Overview

  Upper Halgrave Lake is a Regional District of East Kootenay water, British Columbia side. It sits in lake country bush. At 5 hectares it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. It is a small entry by Regional District of East Kootenay standards. For supplies, Radium Hot Springs is 20 km out. Further out sit Invermere (30 km) and Banff (70 km). No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Upper Halgrave Lake

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Regional District of East Kootenay records list rainbow trout, mountain whitefish, sockeye salmon and bull trout among the fish reported. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Upper Halgrave Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  August runs about 15°C on average, January about -9°C. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about mid April. Averages place the thaw at mid April and the freeze at mid November. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. Plan any trip to Upper Halgrave Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. There is a campsite 200 m from the water. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Lower Halgrave Lake, 0.6 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing on Upper Halgrave Lake should be assumed from this page alone.