Fishing Lily Lake in Park County, Wyoming

• Overview

  Lily Lake is one of the Park County waters in Wyoming. The bank is 7,684 feet above sea level. It measures about 40 acres, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. For supplies, Red Lodge is 28 miles out. After that come Absarokee at 42 miles and Cody at 43 miles. What else is close: Lost Lake 2.2 miles off, Lake Reno 3 miles away, Little Moose Lake 3.2 miles off, Granite Lake 3.7 miles away and Ivy Lake 3.9 miles off. Rules here are straightforward: one county, one set of rules.

• Where to Fish on Lily Lake

  Nothing in our records gives a depth for this one. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Open biodiversity records for Park County list brook trout, rainbow trout, brown trout, cutthroat trout and black-spotted cutthroat trout. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. On Lily Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The seasonal spread runs 17°F to 55°F. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Ice-out usually falls in early May, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Averages suggest open water from about early May through to roughly mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Lily Lake runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. Overnight stays are possible about half a mile out, where camping is mapped. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Lost Lake at 2.2 miles is the sensible second choice. What applies at Lily Lake may have changed since it was mapped.