Fishing Fly Lake in Missoula County, Montana

• Overview

  This water sits in Missoula County, Montana. The water sits 6,348 feet up. Surface area runs to about 12 acres — small enough to read in one session. Start from Bonner-West Riverside, 15 miles down the road. Spokane sits 173 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. What else is close: Boulder Lake at 1.2 miles, Wapiti Lake about 2.1 miles, Crazy Fish Lake at 3.4 miles, Hidden Lake about 3.5 miles and Bull Lake at 3.9 miles. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Fly Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Fish documented in Missoula County include rainbow trout, brook trout, cutthroat trout and northern pike. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Fly Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  August runs about 57°F on average, December about 20°F. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Expect a solid lid for months and a thaw around late April. Expect the water usable from around late April until roughly mid November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. That is the shape of the year on Fly Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. 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. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Failing this one, try Boulder Lake, 1.2 miles away. Nothing here settles the position at Fly Lake for certain.