Where to Fish in the Hood River area - High Mountain Lakes, Hood River County

Species:  Brook, cutthroat trout.
Seasons: Year-round, but June-October.
Links:  Lost Lake Resort (permit for parking at some of these lakes)

There is a series of little lakes along the ridge that rises on the west side of the Hood River Valley and runs south to Mount Hood.  There are a dozen or so lakes that dot the landscape.  About half of them are accessible directly by car, the other half require a short to medium hike.  None of the hikes are terribly long or hard.  These lakes typically have very few anglers over a year, especially the smaller lakes that require hiking. 

Be sure to stop and eat some huckleberries

Look at a map of the area and you will find a bunch of lakes in the area between Lost Lake and Kingsley Reservoir.  The most popular ones are Rainy, Whatum, Black and North Lakes, although there are more than a dozen to explore. 

Several of the small lakes near Lost Lake require a parking fee administered by Lost Lake Resort.

These lakes host mostly brook trout in typical small sizes.  A 10" brookie is a good fish around here. 

Not all of the lakes always hold fish.  The bigger ones will have fish in them every summer, but some of the really small ones are rarely stocked and can lose their fish populations in between stocking if there are droughts or really big winters.

I have certainly fished a few of these lakes that I am certain were void of trout, at least at that moment.  Some drought years have taken their toll on these shallow lakes.  Recent fire activity has also removed some tree cover that helps keep water temps down.

While these lakes are typically not stocked on a yearly basis, most of these lakes do receive an occasional planting of fish to keep the ecosystem moving, even if the trout inevitably succumb to a drought.  

A boat is not required on any of these lakes to access the fish, even at the bigger lakes like Whatum and Rainy.  A boat would be nice if you wanted to take the effort to get one onto Rainy Lake, but I think that is a lot of effort for little extra reward. 

These pretty little lakes have one thing going for them; solitude.  I have yet to see anyone else at any of the hike-in lakes this year.  I tend to go early in the morning on days that are not going to see folks coming to the lakes to swim... Occasionally, someone else is on the trail, headed to another destination, but it's pretty nice to get off the grid for a half day without seeing another human.