Wasco Lake Fishing Guide, Mono County, California

• Overview

  You will find Wasco Lake in Mono County, California. The surface lies 10,328 feet up. It covers about 3 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. It is a small entry by Mono County standards. Yosemite Valley lies 23 miles from the water. Mammoth Lakes is 29 miles and Midpines 46 miles. No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Wasco Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Survey and observation records for Mono County include brook trout, rainbow trout, brown trout and owens sucker. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Work Wasco Lake in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 20°F in February to roughly 51°F in August. The year runs cold to warm and back, with clear transitions. Break-up comes around mid June, and the run that follows is short and strong. Ice usually gives way near mid June, and forms again about mid November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. It sets the rhythm of the year at Wasco Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. There is a mapped landing stage half a mile away. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Should this one be busy, Z Lake is 0.4 miles off. Where Wasco Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.