Whitesand Lake Fishing in Cariboo Regional District, British Columbia

• Overview

  Whitesand Lake is a Cariboo Regional District water, British Columbia side. The bank is 1,006 metres above sea level. The water covers some 36 hectares, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. The edge runs 4.0 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. 91 km away sits Anahim Lake, the nearest town. Hanceville is 98 km and Williams Lake 163 km. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Whitesand Lake

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Reported across Cariboo Regional District: sockeye salmon, Chinook salmon, bull trout and Coho salmon. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Whitesand Lake gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 13°C in August and bottom out at -9°C in January. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. After mid April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Ice clears near mid April and comes back about mid November in a typical year. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. Anyone fishing Whitesand Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Failing this one, try Lunch Lake, 1.8 km away. None of that is settled for Whitesand Lake in what we hold.