Fishing at Lower Quinn Lake, Lane County, Oregon

• Overview

  Lower Quinn Lake is a Lane County water, in Oregon. Height above sea level is 4,672 feet. Small at around 11 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. The nearest town is Oakridge, 19 miles away. La Pine follows at 31 miles, then Three Rivers at 31 miles. If this one is busy: Upper Quinn Lake about 0.4 miles, Long Lake after 0.9 miles, Moolack Lake about 0.9 miles, Winchester Lake after 1.3 miles and Swan Lake about 1.9 miles. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Lower Quinn Lake

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Reported across Lane County: rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, largescale sucker, Coho salmon and Chinook salmon. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. Lower Quinn Lake gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  August runs about 57°F on average, December about 29°F. A lid forms in a hard winter only. Cover comes and goes, so treat it with suspicion rather than trust. June to September is hot work, so the first and last hours are what count. On Lower Quinn Lake the same rules apply, with local timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. For a change of water, Upper Quinn Lake is 0.4 miles distant. Confirm access to Lower Quinn Lake locally before you travel.