Echo Lake in Union County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Echo Lake is one of the Union County waters in Oregon. It sits at 7,257 feet above sea level. It measures about 30 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. It sits higher than most water we list in Oregon. The closest town, Joseph, is 20 miles distant. Tri-Cities is the closest city, 115 miles away. One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Echo Lake

  Depth went unrecorded, which puts the reading back on you. 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. Survey and observation records for Union County include rainbow trout, brook trout, Chinook salmon and brown bullhead. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Fish Echo Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, August reads 53°F and December reads 20°F. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. Break-up comes around mid May, and the run that follows is short and strong. Averages place the thaw at mid May and the freeze at mid November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Time your trip to Echo Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Should this one be busy, Traverse Lake is 0.7 miles off. Nothing here settles the position at Echo Lake for certain.