Red Shirt Lake Fishing Guide, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska

• Overview

  Red Shirt Lake is set in Matanuska-Susitna Borough, Alaska. Elevation runs to 121 feet. This is sizeable water at about 1,173 acres, and a boat opens up most of it. Shoreline length is close to 13 miles, and each section fishes a little differently. Few waters listed in Matanuska-Susitna Borough are bigger. You are 9.7 miles from Willow. Big Lake is 10 miles away, with Houston at 12 miles. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Red Shirt Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Species logged across Matanuska-Susitna Borough include rainbow trout, Coho salmon, sockeye salmon, longnose sucker and Arctic charr. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Red Shirt Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 59°F, with January the cold end at about 9°F. The year runs cold to warm and back, with clear transitions. After late April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Averages suggest open water from about late April through to roughly early November. Fishing peaks soon after break-up and again before the cold returns. At Red Shirt Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing in our records says who may fish here. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. For a change of water, Holdens Lake is 1.1 miles distant. Check the position on Red Shirt Lake before loading the car.