Fishing at Alligator Lake, Summit County, Utah

• Overview

  You will find Alligator Lake in Summit County, Utah. What surrounds it is rolling bush. Small at around 16 acres: two anglers spread out cover most of it. Mountain View is the closest town at 27 miles. It is 80 miles to Salt Lake City, the nearest city. Within a short drive: Sawmill Lake after 3 miles, Bear Lake the better part of 3.1 miles, Sargent Lake after 3.2 miles, Lake Hessie the better part of 3.4 miles and Gilbert Lake after 3.8 miles. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Alligator Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Reported across Summit County: brown trout, rainbow trout and cutthroat trout. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. The near bank of Alligator Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 53°F in July and bottoms out near 18°F in December. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. After early June the shallows warm and the fish move up. The season between ice runs from about early June to mid November. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. Anyone fishing Alligator Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. If the gate is shut, Sawmill Lake at 3 miles is the nearest alternative. Treat access at Alligator Lake as something to verify.