Winstanley Lakes, Alaska: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Set in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska, this is Winstanley Lakes. Elevation runs to 381 feet. About 436 acres, so local knowledge or a boat saves a lot of walking. The perimeter runs near 6.1 miles, so plan the walk before you start. Ketchikan at 33 miles is the nearest place to stop. Vancouver sits 536 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on Winstanley Lakes

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Survey and observation records for Ketchikan Gateway Borough include pink salmon, Chum salmon, Chinook salmon and Coho salmon. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. Take Winstanley Lakes a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 28°F in January to roughly 55°F in August. Ice comes and goes from one year to the next. It is not guaranteed from one year to the next. June to September is hot work, so the first and last hours are what count. It sets the rhythm of the year at Winstanley Lakes.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. No launch point is recorded nearby, so this is a bank water unless you carry a boat in. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Parking space is the usual limit rather than the bank itself. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Failing this one, try Lower Checats Lake, 3 miles away. For Winstanley Lakes, the notice at the access point is the final word.