Fishing Beejay Lake in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska

• Overview

  Beejay Lake lies in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska. The surface lies 197 feet up. This is a pocket water of some 20 acres, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. Our Matanuska-Susitna Borough list holds plenty of bigger water. Willow is the closest place, 15 miles off. Anchorage sits 43 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Beejay Lake

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Fish documented in Matanuska-Susitna Borough include rainbow trout, Coho salmon, sockeye salmon, longnose sucker and Arctic charr. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Beejay Lake gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 59°F; the cold one sits at 10°F. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough late April. The open-water window runs from around late April to about early November in an average year. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. On Beejay Lake the same rules apply, with local timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. Should this one be busy, Lockwood Lake is 2.3 miles off. Check the position at Beejay Lake before loading the car.