Fishing Arapooash Lake in Stillwater County, Montana

• Overview

  Out in Stillwater County, Montana, sits Arapooash Lake. It sits in mixed forest. Surface area runs to about 9 acres — small enough to read in one session. Compared with other Montana water on our list, it sits high. Absarokee sits 27 miles from the bank. Billings is the closest city, 75 miles away. No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Arapooash Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Stillwater County records list rainbow trout, california golden trout, brown trout and brook trout among the fish reported. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. At Arapooash Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The seasonal spread runs 14°F to 49°F. Winter shuts things down for a spell, then spring reopens them fast. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around early June. On the long-run averages the water opens up around early June and starts locking again about early November. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Arapooash Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Little Face Lake, 0.4 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Treat access at Arapooash Lake as something to verify.