Smoot Lake Fishing in Coconino County, Arizona

• Overview

  Smoot Lake lies in Coconino County, in Arizona. The water sits 6,355 feet up. It measures about 49 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Head to Williams, 16 miles away, for anything you forgot. For a city, Deer Valley is 124 miles off. Others worth noting: Allen Lake (2.2 miles), Howard Lake just 3.6 miles, Horse Lake (5.8 miles), Red Lake just 7 miles and Fay Lake (8.7 miles). The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Smoot Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Records held for Coconino County cover brown trout, common carp, flannelmouth sucker, bluehead sucker and green sunfish. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. Fish Smoot Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 70°F in July and bottom out at 32°F in January. Neither winter nor summer shuts things down for long. It should never be assumed safe, whatever the month says. June to September is hot work, so the first and last hours are what count. On Smoot Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Mapping flags this water as intermittent: it can be dry for part of the year, so check before travelling. No made access is recorded, so a short walk in is the likely arrangement. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Failing this one, try Allen Lake, 2.2 miles away. For Smoot Lake in particular, ask before you travel.