Chain Lakes in Park County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Chain Lakes lies within the bounds of Park County, Wyoming. Height above sea level is 9,436 feet. Roughly 94 acres: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. The bank runs about 2.9 miles all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. Few waters listed in Park County are bigger. Start from Red Lodge, 22 miles down the road. Billings is the closest city, 77 miles away. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Chain Lakes

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Survey and observation records for Park County include brook trout, rainbow trout and brown trout. County data is a starting point rather than a guarantee. Chain Lakes fishes better once you know its edges.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, August reads 49°F and January reads 14°F. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Break-up comes around early June, and the run that follows is short and strong. Climate figures give an open season running early June to early November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. The season on Chain Lakes follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. Fantan Lake at 1.1 miles is the sensible second choice. The position on Chain Lakes is worth confirming on the day.