Lost Lake Fishing near Cle Elum, Washington

• Overview

  Lost Lake belongs to Yakima County, Washington. The land about it is pine and birch. The water measures roughly 12 acres, so nothing here is far from anything else. Cle Elum lies 13 miles from the water. The big place round here is Kent, 65 miles distant. Others worth noting: Manastash Lake 1.2 miles away, Shoestring Lake just 2.5 miles, Milk Lake 2.6 miles away, Taneum Lake just 5.2 miles and Little Lake 13 miles away. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Lost Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Records held for Yakima County cover rainbow trout, pumpkinseed and mountain whitefish. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. Treat Lost Lake as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 57°F in August and bottom out at 24°F in January. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. Count the season from break-up, usually mid April. Open water usually runs from mid April until about late November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. On Lost Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Should this one be busy, Manastash Lake is 1.2 miles off. The position on Lost Lake is worth confirming on the day.