Fortymile Lake Fishing Guide, Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska

• Overview

  Fortymile Lake sits in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, out in Alaska. This is taiga ground. Roughly 156 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. About 1.8 miles of bank, so nothing stays unexplored for long. Nearest town is Healy, 114 miles off. Anchorage sits 191 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Fortymile Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Fish documented in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area include bering cisco, least cisco and lake whitefish. County data is a starting point rather than a guarantee. Treat Fortymile Lake as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 60°F on average, January about -5°F. Little of the calendar is open water, so timing counts for everything. The lid usually goes in early May, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Break-up near early May, freeze-up near mid October: that is the shape of an average year. The first weeks of open water and the last are the ones to plan for. On Fortymile Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. If the gate is shut, Thirtyeight Mile Lake at 1.9 miles is the nearest alternative. Signs at Fortymile Lake carry more weight than any list.