Fishing Pinchot Lake in Albany County, Wyoming

• Overview

  Look for Pinchot Lake in the Albany County part of Wyoming. Around the bank it is rolling bush. At roughly 11 acres, the whole thing is within casting reach of a single walk. It is high ground by Wyoming standards. Nearest place of any size is Saratoga, 28 miles away. It is 82 miles to Fort Collins, the nearest city. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Pinchot Lake

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Public occurrence data for Albany County names brown trout, brook trout, rainbow trout and longnose sucker. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. The near bank of Pinchot Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 50°F and January near 17°F on the long-run figures. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. Hard water holds through the cold months, breaking up near early June. Expect the water usable from around early June until roughly early November. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. It holds true on Pinchot Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. Public data shows nothing built here, so treat the whole approach as informal. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Sandy Lake at 0.4 miles is the sensible second choice. For Pinchot Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.