Fishing at Cooper Lake, Kittitas County, Washington

• Overview

  Cooper Lake belongs to Kittitas County, Washington. The land about it is pine and birch. Roughly 121 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. About 2.7 miles of bank, so nothing stays unexplored for long. Few waters listed in Kittitas County are bigger. The town to know is Cle Elum, 19 miles out. The big place round here is Renton, 48 miles distant. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Cooper Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Species logged across Kittitas County include cutthroat trout, rainbow trout, Chinook salmon and sockeye salmon. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. On Cooper Lake a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 58°F in August and bottoms out near 24°F in January. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough mid April. Expect the water usable from around mid April until roughly late November. Spring is short and heavy here; autumn is longer and steadier. That shapes the year on Cooper Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Boat access is recorded roughly half a mile away. A parking area is marked roughly half a mile out. Overnight stays are possible about half a mile out, where camping is mapped. Facilities run to toilets half a mile from the water. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. For a change of water, Diamond Lake is 1.4 miles distant. Treat access at Cooper Lake as something to verify.