Fishing Woodpecker Lake in Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska

• Overview

  In Alaska, Woodpecker Lake belongs to Kenai Peninsula Borough. Tidal water begins 11 miles from here. With some 109 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The bank runs about 2.5 miles all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. The nearest place of any size is Ridgeway, 6.7 miles away. Anchorage is the closest city, 55 miles away. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Woodpecker Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Survey and observation records for Kenai Peninsula Borough include northern pike, sockeye salmon, rainbow trout, Coho salmon and Chinook salmon. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. On Woodpecker Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 57°F, while January sits near 15°F. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. The lid arrives early and lasts until roughly late April. Averages place the thaw at late April and the freeze at early November. Fishing peaks soon after break-up and again before the cold returns. Woodpecker Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. For a change of water, Eagle Lake is 0.7 miles distant. Check the position at Woodpecker Lake before loading the car.