Trail Lake is the first installment in a series I will be working on titled "Fly Fishing Alpine Lakes". Creating this series is a tribute to my adventurous fiance Meg Hornby and her family of relentless mountain alpinists, accredited with coaxing me into demanding hikes up daunting peaks to hidden lakes. Although I may not always be quite as enthusiastic as them on the hiking portions, I am often dumbfounded by the extraordinary fishing these mountain lakes have to offer in incredible settings. These irreplaceable experiences I have been fortunate enough to have would not have been possible without their encouragement and guidance. For this, (and much more) I am extremely grateful.
Tail Lake
In the remote Lolo wilderness of Western Montana lies a quiet mountain lake deemed Trail Lake. I was alerted to this lake's presence upon conducting research to find nearby alpine lakes containing brook trout. Brookies are not a native species to this area, so my opportunities to target them had generally been slim to none. Although considered a somewhat uninteresting species of trout by some, this general scarcity generated my personal interest in pursuing them. I also consider brook trout to be one of the most visually stimulating of the salmonoid species, with their blood-red undertones, topographically striped backs, and intricate blue halos. As these fish swam in my mind, I quickly planned a trip based on old stocking reports and my new book on nearby hikes.
Access
This alpine lake is accessed south of Superior, MT, and can be located at N. 47.0051, W. 115.0420. To reach the trailhead, take USFS Road 250 for 18 miles, passing the popular Heart Lake trailhead. It is pretty easy to miss the righthand turnoff to USFS Road 388; I passed it initially on my visit. So keep those eyes peeled, and track your mileage! Please note that this is a steep, bumpy, narrow one-lane road with a massive dop off. It took me a bit of courage to make my way down in my Ford F150, but it is manageable with any vehicle capable of decent vigor. After nearly 3 miles, you will turn to USFS Trail 156 at the North Fork Trout Creek Crossing. From there it is only 1.5 miles to a small parking clearing, with the trailhead on the left just after the bridge.
The Hike
The hike is nearly 5 miles long on a relatively maintained trail in a thickly forested area. It is slightly overgrown in spots, including a few downed tree crossings, but nothing that requires an arduous effort to pass. The trail begins at a mild grade, slowly climbing until the final mile where the grade increases to a steep push. Trail Lake is not a difficult hike by mountaineering standards, but will certainly make the angler break a sweat on the final ascent to the lake itself. Be sure to grab your bear protection, as this is grizzly country. My fiance and I had a slight spook towards the end of our hike as we could hear a large animal nearby who refused to be deterred by our calls and yells. We cautiously passed, never determining exactly what we had hiked by.
Fishing
As you approach the lake from the trailhead, you will find yourself at the North end. When my party of two arrived, we immediately walked to the water to take a look. The alpine scenery is gorgeous around the lake - steep mountainsides booming with green brush, flanked by a resting rockslide with boulders the size of cars. To our backs, dense forest pushing us to the lake, with sparse, modest campsites to our side tucked tightly in the woods. After a moment to catch our breath and take in the atmosphere, we quickly plotted our attack strategy.
Finding a comfortable spot to fly fish was a tricky task. Floating logs prevented wading possibilities to True North, so we began our hike Southeast along the edge of the lake. There is a shallow stretch of water near the campsites on the Northeast corner that allows for about 20 yards of wading, but lacks structure and quickly gains to chest-deep levels. As we approached the Southeast corner of the lake, we began to observe more fish activity and structure, but the thick tree cover eliminated any casting possibility. Taking a deer trail, we made our way to the Southern bank of the lake, realizing this position offered the best mix of trout water, casting ability, and (slight) standing room. With a steep mountain incline directly behind us, and deep water immediately in front, wading ability leaves something to be desired.
Casting technique comes into play if you are planning to fish Trail Lake on your feet. Brook trout are typically willing and able to attack a fly, but presentation is made difficult by limitations inflicted through the alpine environment. We began by side-casting and roll-casting attractor dry flies below trees and brush to our right, only being met with success on our very best of casts. Brookies were slow to inspect our flies, but quick to grab them once they came to a decision. Splashing the water, these feisty trout attacked with vigor, and were brought to the net with immense struggle despite their small size. Although entertaining, the catching was generally few and far between, so we looked to move positions once again.
My fiance and I began to work our way to more open water containing deep underwater boulders and logs, but were met with disinterest from the resident fish when it came to the attractor flies. It was time for a change, so we switched tactics to dark woolly buggers, hoping to incite instinctual violence. We found this strategy to work with ease. Brook trout slammed our streamers, being particularly fond of the purple color. These trout increased in size too, and we began pulling brookies of sound strength and length to the net with consistency. Their haloed sides and topographic backs shimmered in the sun as they came to hand, and made for excellent pictures before they were released back into the water to fight another day.
As we approached the later afternoon, my partner and I decided it was time to leave this secluded gem; hopefully to return for another fantastic day of fishing at a later date.
Final Thoughts
Trail Lake is a wonderful alpine lake to target a multitude of decent-sized brook trout in a land where they are seldom found. It is a rarely used lake, boasting mild difficulty to access, and should be obtainable to most outdoor enthusiasts with a free day. Next time, we plan to bring a personal pack raft. The hike was not demanding enough to constitute leaving the raft, and it would be an extremely helpful tool to improve fishing conditions across the lake as a whole. Also, it would be helpful to bring bug spray. We went in July, and small black flies were biting us relentlessly which made our standing position all the more uncomfortable.
All in all, this is a lake I would recommend anyone visit in the area, especially those looking for a quiet and beautiful sanctuary. Trail Lake offers great fishing for those up to the technical challenge, rewarding all visitors with more than just a bountiful catch.
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