Fishing at MartensLake, Carmacks, Yukon

• Overview

  Within Carmacks, Yukon, you have MartensLake. The bank is 1,191 metres above sea level. Around 51 hectares of surface means several distinct areas to work. The whole outline is near 2.9 km, and most of it is walkable. On size it sits at the modest end of our Carmacks list. For a base, Whitehorse sits 161 km out. The big place round here is Anchorage, 667 km distant. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on MartensLake

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Across Carmacks, recorded fish include Chinook salmon, Arctic grayling, northern pike and lake whitefish. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. MartensLake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -21°C to 12°C. Winter runs most of the calendar, and everything worth doing happens in the gap. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid May. Ice clears near mid May and comes back about mid October in a typical year. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. MartensLake runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. No made access is recorded, so a short walk in is the likely arrangement. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Failing this one, try Five Mile Lake, 1.2 km away. Where MartensLake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.