Picnic Lakes near Bigfork: Fishing Spots, Seasons and Access

• Overview

  This water sits in Flathead County, Montana. What surrounds it is lake country bush. It covers about 2 acres, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Flathead County. The nearest town is Bigfork, 9.2 miles away. The nearest city of size is Lethbridge, 118 miles away. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Picnic Lakes

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Species logged across Flathead County include rainbow trout, sockeye salmon, largemouth bass and brook trout. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Fish Picnic Lakes to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is 21°F to 61°F. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. Ice-out usually falls in early April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. The open-water window runs from around early April to about late November in an average year. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. Time your trip to Picnic Lakes by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. Nothing in the way of made access shows up nearby: no ramp, no car park, no path. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Parking space is the usual limit rather than the bank itself. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Black Lake sits 0.6 miles off and takes the overflow. Check the current arrangement for Picnic Lakes.