Lost Lake 7-15-20

[Joe_Dizzy]

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Mirror Lake does have some very large rainbow trout. They are the ones eating the stockers. You aren’t going to catch those with small flies or leeches. Try very early or late season on a cloudy evening. Throw something that mimics the 6-10 inch trout they feed on. C and R is going to results in very high mortality with those fishing worms. There are something like 600 lakes in the Unitas. The very few roadside ones are likely to remain catch and release. The roadside ones aren’t all super productive any ways. I recall as Lost Lake was starting to ice out 17 years ago, my 5 yo son caught his first fish without any help from anyone. It was a 19 inch rainbow. The skinny thing probably didn’t weigh more than a pound. We caught many roughly 6-8 inch rookies I recall. It’s unlikely to become a trophy lake no matter what you do with it.
Finding a lake with descent fish takes some work and may change year to year. Don’t expect DWR to line up big fish for you at drive up spots in the Unitas. You can follow stocking reports and see where they occasionally dump old brood stock if that’s what you’re interested in. I much prefer catching wild trout even if it isn’t always convenient. I actually enjoy the solitude that usually comes with the pursuit. I see the roadside lakes mostly for kids, when you just don’t have the time to hike some or the snow is still too deep to make hiking practically.

Interesting about big 'bows on Mirror Lake... maybe I'll take a run up there with some articulated streamers later this year. Appreciate the tip.

I don't necessarily need big fish to be happy... but catching near-fingerlings is just weird. My biggest problem is that I like to get out in my float tube, so more/less restricted to lakes at, or close to, the road for that. I've hiked to many lakes in the Uintas and honestly have yet to get into really good fishing. I guess I just need to keep knocking on that door until I finally find something exciting to motivate me to keep after it.