Leland Lake near Port Ludlow: Fishing Spots, Seasons and Access

• Overview

  Leland Lake belongs to Jefferson County, Washington. Height above sea level is 203 feet. With some 108 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The full circuit measures close to 1.7 miles on foot. Of the waters listed here in Jefferson County, this is the largest. Start from Port Ludlow, 9.4 miles down the road. Beyond it, Port Hadlock-Irondale at 11 miles and Lofall at 12 miles. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Leland Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Open biodiversity records for Jefferson County list Coho salmon, rainbow trout, cutthroat trout and Chum salmon. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Read Leland Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 62°F in August and bottoms out near 39°F in December. In milder years the surface never sets. In milder years the edges alone go, and the middle never sets. Autumn steadies things again once the heat lets go. That shapes the year on Leland Lake. The first warm days of the year bring fish shallow quickly.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. There is a mapped slipway roughly half a mile away. Parking within half a mile means no long carry with tackle. Mapping shows a jetty some half a mile off. Overnight stays are possible half a mile away. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Tarboo Lake, 2.4 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing here settles the position at Leland Lake for certain.