Fishing at Orchid Lake, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska

• Overview

  Orchid Lake is one of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough listings for Alaska. The water sits 180 feet up. Small at around 24 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. On size it sits at the modest end of our Matanuska-Susitna Borough list. Nearest place of any size is Big Lake, 4.2 miles away. The big place round here is Anchorage, 24 miles distant. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Orchid Lake

  Depth figures are not published for this one. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Records held for Matanuska-Susitna Borough cover rainbow trout, Coho salmon, sockeye salmon and longnose sucker. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Fish Orchid Lake to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 10°F in January and 59°F in July. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. Once it clears, about late April, the fishing comes on quickly. Expect the water usable from around late April until roughly early November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Orchid Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. Access points are not mapped for this water, which suits people who like quiet. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Failing this one, try Beaverhouse Lake, 0.7 miles away. Rules at Orchid Lake are worth checking on the day.