Jim Lake, Alaska: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, is where Jim Lake sits. It lies 69 feet above sea level. Roughly 160 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. The bank runs about 1.9 miles all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. The nearest place of any size is Butte, 3.5 miles away. It is 40 miles to Anchorage, the nearest city. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Jim Lake

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Reported across Matanuska-Susitna Borough: rainbow trout, Coho salmon, sockeye salmon and longnose sucker. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. On Jim Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 57°F and January reads 15°F. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. Ice-out usually falls in late April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. The open-water window runs from around late April to about early November in an average year. The middle of summer slows a little, with dawn and dusk carrying it. The season on Jim Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. The closest car park is half a mile away, so pack accordingly. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. For a change of water, Gull Lake is 0.9 miles distant. Nothing here settles the position at Jim Lake for certain.