Dean Lake Fishing Guide, Sublette County, Wyoming

• Overview

  In Wyoming, Dean Lake falls inside Sublette County. Beyond the shoreline you have mixed forest. This is a pocket water of some 11 acres, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. Our Sublette County list holds plenty of bigger water. The town to know is Pinedale, 18 miles out. Beyond it, Marbleton at 43 miles and Fort Washakie at 47 miles. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Dean Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Records held for Sublette County cover brook trout, rainbow trout, brown trout, lake trout and white sucker. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. Dean Lake gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 49°F and January at 15°F. Spring and autumn carry the fishing; summer and winter test it. Look for the thaw near early June; the fishing lifts straight after. Averages place the thaw at early June and the freeze at early November. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. It sets the rhythm of the year at Dean Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. Round Lake, 0.7 miles away, makes the obvious fallback. For Dean Lake in particular, ask before you travel.