Forbes Lake Fishing Guide, King County, Washington

• Overview

  Forbes Lake falls in King County, part of Washington. The sea is 9.3 miles distant. Surface area runs to about 7 acres — small enough to read in one session. By elevation it sits in the lower part of our Washington listings. Kirkland is the closest place, 1.4 miles off. It is 5.6 miles to Bellevue, the nearest city. The boundary is close enough to be worth checking before you fish.

• Where to Fish on Forbes Lake

  We hold no depth figure for this one. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Species logged across King County include Chum salmon, Coho salmon, Chinook salmon, sockeye salmon and yellow perch. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. Forbes Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The seasonal spread runs 40°F to 65°F. The year never really closes; it just gets uncomfortable in summer. March through May is the strongest run, with autumn a second stretch. Spring and autumn carry the year; summer squeezes it into the ends of the day. That is the shape of the year on Forbes Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. There is recorded parking some half a mile off. Somewhere to sit and eat is half a mile out. Facilities run to toilets half a mile from the water. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Totem Lake, 1.7 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Treat Forbes Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.