Martin Lake, Alaska: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Within Chugach Census Area, Alaska, you have Martin Lake. Around the bank it is mixed forest. Surface area runs to roughly 2.4 sq miles, so plan for one area rather than the whole. The shoreline runs to about 16 miles, far more than one trip can cover. It is among the larger waters listed here for Chugach Census Area. Head to Cordova, 43 miles away, for anything you forgot. Valdez is 81 miles and Girdwood 161 miles. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Martin Lake

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Records held for Chugach Census Area cover Chum salmon, pink salmon, Coho salmon, sockeye salmon and Chinook salmon. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. Take Martin Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 56°F on average, January about 19°F. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. After late April the shallows warm and the fish move up. The lid tends to go about late April and return around mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Plan around that when you fish Martin Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No made access appears within a short radius, so plan to park on a verge and walk. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. If the gate is shut, Little Martin Lake at 2.7 miles is the nearest alternative. Where Martin Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.