Fishing at Edson Lake, Mariposa County, California

• Overview

  Edson Lake is one of the Mariposa County listings for California. It sits in mixed woodland. It covers about 7 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. The nearest place of any size is Yosemite Valley, 8.1 miles away. Clovis sits 57 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Edson Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Open biodiversity records for Mariposa County list rainbow trout, brook trout, brown trout, Sacramento sucker and black crappie. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. On Edson Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 58°F in August and bottoms out near 29°F in February. The year gives four workable seasons without severe ends. Cover comes and goes, so treat it with suspicion rather than trust. February into May fishes hardest as the water warms. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Edson Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing in our records says who may fish here. The map shows no ramp or car park nearby, so this is a walk-in water. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Should this one be busy, Hart Lakes is 0.8 miles off. The position on Edson Lake is worth confirming on the day.