Billy Jones Lake, Oregon: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Oregon holds Billy Jones Lake, in Wallowa County. The ground around here is rolling bush. At 7 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. By elevation it is in the upper part of our Oregon listings. Joseph sits 9.3 miles from here and is the nearest stop. After that come Enterprise at 13 miles and Union at 25 miles. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Billy Jones Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Reported across Wallowa County: sockeye salmon, brook trout, rainbow trout and mountain whitefish. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Work Billy Jones Lake in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  August is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 52°F, while December sits near 20°F. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid May. Climate averages put the opening at about mid May and the closing near mid November. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. Billy Jones Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. No slipway, car park or made path shows up nearby in mapping, so treat access as rough. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. Should this one be busy, Echo Lake is 0.4 miles off. Signs at Billy Jones Lake carry more weight than any list.