Fishing at Janhke Lake, Lemhi County, Idaho

• Overview

  Janhke Lake is a Lemhi County water, Idaho side. It sits in pine and birch. Small at around 10 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. It sits higher than most water we list in Idaho. Salmon is the closest place, 15 miles off. For a city, Boise is 169 miles off. More in the same country: Pioneer Lake 0.7 miles off, Highup Lake just 1.1 miles, Skytop Lake 1.2 miles off, Darkhorse Lake just 2 miles and Timberline Lake 2.2 miles off. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Janhke Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Survey and observation records for Lemhi County include rainbow trout, cutthroat trout and Chinook salmon. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Janhke Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from 18°F in January up to 53°F in July. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. Ice is part of the season here, ending near late May. On average, late May opens the water and early November closes it again. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. At Janhke Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Pioneer Lake, 0.7 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Check the current arrangement for Janhke Lake.