Surprise Lake Fishing near Vail, Colorado

• Overview

  The Summit County end of Colorado holds Surprise Lake. The water sits 10,098 feet up. At 6 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. Nearest town is Vail, 12 miles off. Minturn follows at 17 miles, then Avon at 17 miles. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water. Conditions change the water more than the calendar does.

• Where to Fish on Surprise Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Survey and observation records for Summit County include brook trout, rainbow trout and brown trout. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. On Surprise Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 53°F, while January sits near 17°F. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. The lid arrives early and lasts until roughly mid May. In an average year the thaw lands around mid May and the freeze near early November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Surprise Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Should this one be busy, Tipperary Lake is 1.7 miles off. Nothing here settles the position at Surprise Lake for certain.