Trout in lakes?

[ChuckB1]

Can anyone give me some general advice on trout (Brown, Rainbow) fishing on lakes in the spring?  It is something I have never done and would like to try.

I would like to know if they are normally in shallow or deep water at this time of year.
Do they relate to dropoffs or other structure?
Are they normally on the bottom or suspended, chasing baitfish?

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Chuck

[MikeVT]

Try fishing where a river or stream empties into the lake.  Trout and salmon will be chasing spawing baitfish near these areas.  Should be pretty shallow, when the water warms up a bit they will start heading deeper, although in my experience, big browns love to cruise the shallows any time of the year.  If you can find a gravel bottom coupled with a river/stream mouth, you should be in business.  Some people like trolling, I like to cast and feel the slam of an aggressive trout.  My opinion only.

[Kodiak Commando]

Generally this time of year the weather will determine where the fish are. Remember the water is still pretty cold so they won't be in shallow all the time. In my experience if the temp is cold and the weather cloudy the trout will be on the deep side. Try finding some lake maps to find the deep spots. On the other hand if the weather is warm and sunny the water will heat up in mid day so the trout will probably be close to shore, sometimes within 10 feet in my experience. Also as previosly mentiong inlets are a great place to fish and even just places of runnoff that are just little trickles. More importantly than baitfish the water is alway warmer where an inlett creek or rain runnoff comes in. Also remember that some rainbows will start to spawn soon so they will start to gather sometime usually by outlet and inlet creeks.

[PGKris]

Why do so many people think all trout eat baitfish?? Our trout eat bugs......only. Only the big dollies and char eat baitfish like kokanee or whitefish or peamouth. Rainbows and brookies here never eat other fish. At least I've never caught any that have, and I've caught a lot of trout.
For the springtime? On the fly fish a chronomid pattern under an indicator about 6" - 1 foot off the bottom. Leech patterns also work well as do shrimp. Fish the flat shoal zones near the shores of lakes where the fish will be cruising looking for food.
If you're chucking gear then go with small spinners with worms. Stuff like wedding bands, mepps aglias, bolos, flatfish or blue foxes work well trolled. As far as where they are.....it never hurts to troll past creek mouths but off points or between islands works well too. Fish from point to point across bays and from point to point between islands.
If you're going to cast, fish off points and dropoffs or near inflowing creek mouths. Spinners again although I should mention lures like the Crocodile, Williams Wabler and Gibbs F.S.T.
Good luck
KRIS

[ChuckB1]

Thanks for the information guys.  I'll try it out this weekend.

[TroutFishingBear]

Why do so many people think all trout eat baitfish?? Our trout eat bugs......only. Only the big dollies and char eat baitfish like kokanee or whitefish or peamouth. Rainbows and brookies here never eat other fish. At least I've never caught any that have, and I've caught a lot of trout.

I disagree, rainbows in the colorado river gorge on suckers and chubs. I have caught many that burp up suckers and chubs, and have them lodged in there throats. In lakes, I find the same thing. Of course, the rainbows really don't start baitfish eating until they are about 14", the brookies and browns typically start smaller at about 10". But to each his own...I just have found what you said to be a complete 180 of what I've experience.
As for location, kodiakcommando hit it pretty well. I also like to focus on rocky points and rocky areas for browns and rainbows, especially if your lakes have crayfish that these fish love to gorge on. I like these rocky points to have quick access to fairly deep water, and preferably good proximity to a nice cove with weed growth.
For gear, I like to use a 3/8 oz. spoon, preferably a buckshot rattlespoon or a daredevil. I also like to use 3-4" curly tail grubs, and 1/8-1/4 oz. rattletraps work well also.

[Kodiak Commando]

Kodiaks trout and landlockes salmon feed very little on bugs when they reach 10 plus inches. They mosty all feed on leeches or their numer one baitfish, sticklebacks. Since i mostly fly fish this time of year i would recomend thuder creeks, small clausers or woolybuggers. Generally a slower retrieve than you would use in the summer works best.

[PGKris]

Man it never ceases to amaze me that trout from different areas differ so much. The only trout in BC that will actively seek out baitfish are the big rainbows in the Babine and other such rivers that are following the salmon fry migrations and the coastal cutts that do the same thing.
In the central interior where I am, the trout, no matter what the size, eat bugs.....dragons...damsels......leeches....shrimp ......chronnys.....mayflies...etc. I've seen 8 pound plus rainbows consistently taken on size 12 chronomids.
It's crazy how the techniques differ
KRIS

[TroutFishingBear]

Man it never ceases to amaze me that trout from different areas differ so much. The only trout in BC that will actively seek out baitfish are the big rainbows in the Babine and other such rivers that are following the salmon fry migrations and the coastal cutts that do the same thing.
In the central interior where I am, the trout, no matter what the size, eat bugs.....dragons...damsels......leeches....shrimp ......chronnys.....mayflies...etc. I've seen 8 pound plus rainbows consistently taken on size 12 chronomids.
It's crazy how the techniques differ
KRIS

That and/or trout (except lakers) will take about anything you throw out there at 'em

[Mackdaddy21]

I have found that trout get most of their nutritional value from baitfish. They gorge on suckers, chubs, other trout, and bluegills, walleye, or basslings.
However all trout are opportunistic and will take easy insects. So that's why it's common to catch big trout on small flies. Have seen it happen plenty.
The best place in lakes for trout in spring are in shallower rocky areas that warm faster than other places. As well as near inflowing creeks or rivers. You just have to have a slow presentation and these areas need to be near deep water.

Tyler

[PGKris]

The best places here are over submerged weedbeds in less than 20 FOW because at those depths you get more photosynthesis taking place and more bugs emerging. More bugs = more fish. Trout here do not eat baitfish as a main staple. I'm not saying a monster trout might whack off a chub or something on the way by but they eat bugs.
KRIS

[meadowpikeman]

I have yet to find any sort of baitfish in any trout other than a laker or splake, and with splake usually its sticklebacks, I would definitley say invertabrates can grow trout just as large an forage fish, seeing as i have yet to find a rainbow in the last 12 years with minnows in its gullet, just for the record the sask record rainbow is 26lbs and a 31 was taken spearfishing last summer. Very few to no trout lakes in our province have a forage base, what they do have are massive food sources found in scuds, chironomids, backswimmers, beetles, mayflys, dragonfly nymphs etc. Why would a big ol bow chase a minnow around when there are clouds of scuds who couldn't try if they wanted to actually escape?? I think this is why mere puddles around here have a habit of growning big rainbows and browns.

[PGKris]

Why would a big ol bow chase a minnow around when there are clouds of scuds who couldn't try if they wanted to actually escape?? I think this is why mere puddles around here have a habit of growning big rainbows and browns.

Exactly!

[devil-man]

I know for a fact that trout here in WNY eat forage fish.
As stated earlier, the difference is amazing from one region to another.
And like TFB said- at times they will eat anything!

[meadowpikeman]

yeah from region to region it definitely varies alot, great lakes techniques IE trolling big cranks and spoons on planer boards and dipsy's etc. are definitely methods that are super effective for tageting trout which feed on smelt, shad, alewifes, and the like. where in our neck of the woods you would probably get skunked if trying to catch bows and browns using fl 14's and other big minnow baits. And conversely if i went and trolled the great lakes  with a fly rod and no. 6 doc spratley i'd catch dick all more than likely. Another difference is we have no trout rivers to speak off, only small lakes which are entirely naturaly devoid of gamefish and roughfish (suckers etc).