Kepler Lake Fishing near Gateway, Alaska

• Overview

  Set in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska, this is Kepler Lake. The country here is mixed forest. With some 46 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Bank access stretches around 1.3 miles in total. It is low-lying compared with other Alaska water we list. The nearest place of any size is Gateway, 1.5 miles away. For a city, Anchorage is 32 miles off. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Kepler Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Records held for Matanuska-Susitna Borough cover 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. Read Kepler Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 58°F, the coldest about 14°F. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. The lid usually goes in late April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Averages suggest open water from about late April through to roughly early November. Fish feed hardest at the start and the close of the open season. Kepler Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. There is a jetty half a mile off, worth knowing on a busy day. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. If the gate is shut, Triangle Lake at 0.2 miles is the nearest alternative. Treat access at Kepler Lake as something to verify.