Fishing at Grace Lake, Big Horn County, Wyoming

• Overview

  Grace Lake is a Big Horn County water, Wyoming side. The bank is 9,321 feet above sea level. The water measures roughly 13 acres, so nothing here is far from anything else. The town to know is Buffalo, 30 miles out. After that come Sheridan at 35 miles and Basin at 37 miles. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Grace Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Across Big Horn County, recorded fish include brook trout, rainbow trout, brown trout, white sucker and common carp. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Anyone new to Grace Lake should walk it once before setting up.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The seasonal spread runs 14°F to 51°F. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. After early June the shallows warm and the fish move up. The season between ice runs from about early June to early November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Grace Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. Formal access is not mapped, so the last stretch is likely on foot. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. If the gate is shut, Lake Solitude at 1.9 miles is the nearest alternative. Where Grace Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.