Bellas Lakes Fishing in Custer County, Idaho

• Overview

  In Idaho, Bellas Lakes falls inside Custer County. Elevation runs to 9,442 feet. This is a pocket water of some 5 acres, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. On size it sits at the modest end of our Custer County list. Sun Valley at 19 miles is the nearest place to stop. It is 112 miles to Boise, the nearest city. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Bellas Lakes

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. A reservoir gives you a hard edge, a shelf, and not much else. Held water runs deepest at the wall and shallows back to the inflow. Species logged across Custer County include rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, Chinook salmon and sockeye salmon. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Read Bellas Lakes for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 17°F in December to roughly 53°F in July. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. The lid usually goes in late May, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Averages place the thaw at late May and the freeze at mid November. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. That shapes the year on Bellas Lakes.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. 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. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. If the gate is shut, Clear Lake at 0.6 miles is the nearest alternative. For Bellas Lakes, the notice at the access point is the final word.