The Best and Most Consistent Trout Action of Late Summer

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The grind was brutal, with switchbacks so steep that at some points on the talus trail we gained 1,000 feet of elevation in just a half mile of gritty, grunting hiking. But when we finally topped the ridge and looked down, the view was as invigorating as the prospect of downhill travel. Way below, a jade lake twinkled in the mountain sun, inviting us to its cool, mysterious waters.

The invitation was consummated an hour later with jewel-bright Yellowstone cutthroat trout, soaring out of the aquamarine depths to snap at almost every fly my kids and I presented to them. We caught hand-sized trout on grasshopper imitations. We caught large spawners on weighted Woolly Buggers. And we caught as many fish as we could on deep-running hardware until we lost our flashy pink-and-pearl Panther Martin.

It was one of those legendary alpine afternoons. The fish were on, catching them was a cinch and the scenery was worthy of its own Instagram feed. We finished the day by jumping in the lake, astonished by its impossibly cold, clear water but refreshed for the grueling hike up and out of the basin.

A FLEETING OPPORTUNITY

On that day everything went right, but the opposite has also greeted me upon arrival at other alpine lakes. Despite my elevated anticipation of success, I’ve left some high-country lakes with nary a bite, only blisters and vistas my reward for the journey.

The reason for both fast action and lockjaw has to do with the specific terrain, elevation and habitat of alpine lakes. Compared to low-elevation fisheries, these are bleak and barren places, with very little nutrients available in the super-chilled water that is iced-over for much of the year. When the ice comes off and the sun hits the water, the feed is on for these hungry trout, and they can hit just about any fly pattern, spinner or spoon with abandon. That is the bounty of an alpine lake.

But given that the sterile water is shockingly clear, these trout are vulnerable to ospreys, eagles, bears and anglers, and when they’re not enthusiastically hitting hooks, they’re suspicious as a middle school principal and will turn away from line shadows, sloppy casts and even anglers’ unobstructed profiles.

• Related: Great Alpine Trout Lakes in the West

A hot bite can end suddenly when a cloud’s shadow covers the lake, or a summer squall blows through, or rockfall disturbs the surface. That’s not a reason not to fish these places, but it puts a premium on catching fish when they’re on, because there’s no guarantee the bite will last. In some Western mountain ranges, the narrow window when alpine lakes are accessible to hikers and not covered with ice spans from late July to the first half of September.

ALPINE ARSENAL

You don’t have to get too technical or specific with your gear for most alpine trout. Because of that narrow feeding window, they will enthusiastically hit just about any pattern. But don’t get too crazy. Keep your flies buggy-looking, and make sure your hardware is on the small size and in fairly muted finishes (my pink-and-pearl Panther Martin notwithstanding).

One of my favorite spinners for alpine lakes is a No. 1 Mepps Aglia Marabou in brown trout/brown. It has a burnished-gold spinner and brass bead, but the luxurious brown marabou skirt pulsates in the water like it’s alive. Similarly, spoons that either imitate tiny trout or forage species like crayfish are better picks than the chartreuse, orange and bubble-gum-pink patterns that can work in the murky water of lowland trout lakes.

Go-to hardware includes a selection of those Mepps Aglia spinners, either dressed or not. While I like the 1/8-ounce size, it’s so light that it can be hard to cast in the wind that is always blowing across alpine lakes, and casting distance is limited. So, bring a variety of sizes and weights, including Mepps No. 2 (1/6 ounce), No. 3 (1/4 ounce) and maybe a couple of super-sized No. 5s (1/2 ounce) to get into deep water where larger trout lurk to ambush smaller fish.

Other specific spinners to have in your arsenal are those in Panther Martin’s Classic series that have a blade that spins around the shaft. I’ve had a lot of success with the Gold Regular (it has a black body with yellow dots and a brass spinner) in either size 2 (1/6 ounce) or 4 (1/8 ounce). The Gold/Yellow Regular and Orange Silver Speckled Regular in those same sizes are also good choices. One of the benefits of the Panther Martin design is that the blade spins even when the lure is dropping, so it can pick off fish that are holding tight to vertical structure like rock faces and submerged boulders.

I’ve had wonderful success with the gold Jake’s Spin-a-Lure with red dots for alpine trout. There’s something about the wobbling action of the 1/4-ounce spoon and the way the high-country sun strikes the metal that drives trout crazy. I also like Luhr-Jensen’s smaller Super Duper casting spoons for clear-water cutthroats.

Fish these spinners on ultralight rigs. My pack spinning rod is a 4-piece Daiwa Presso and a micro reel loaded with 4-pound test. You can get away with 2-pound, but I’ve found that the 4-pound better resists the abrasions you’ll get if you’re fishing close to the talus that defines the bottom of every alpine lake.

FEED ‘EM FLIES

As fun and productive as spin-fishing is, I’ve found fly-fishing to be the path to 100-trout days in the high country. You can fish a variety of small dry flies or size up and go deep with natural-looking streamers and nymphs that can be deadly in the clear water. Plus, there’s something classically Western about standing on a boulder above a aquamarine lake and presenting a tiny mosquito pattern to a slash-jawed cutthroat. Just make sure there’s plenty of tree-free space behind you for back casts. I’ve lost just about as many flies to tree limbs as I have to fish.

My alpine fly box has a little bit of everything, but it’s heavy on attractors. These are dry flies that don’t imitate any particular hatch but can mimic either a mayfly or a small grasshopper or maybe a terrestrial like an ant or a cricket. I’ve probably caught more high-country trout on a size-16 Black Ant than anything, but close behind it is a size-12 Chernobyl Ant, which I tie with an orange strike indicator on its head. The foam pattern floats plenty high, but the strike indicator catches my eye in choppy water.

Size 12 and 14 yellow-thorax grasshopper patterns are also very effective, and be sure to have some cricket imitations in your box. These alpine trout see a lot of wind-blown terrestrials, including big black ants, spruce moths, crickets and beetles, so it’s hard to go wrong with a twitchy black bug.

I also like classic Royal Coachman and Parachute Adams on alpine lakes. They’re generalists, imitating mayflies and maybe smaller moths. Similarly, high-floating Elk Hair Caddis dries are effective. But don’t neglect your nymphs and streamers. I’ve caught a lot of clear-water trout on Hare’s Ears, those non-descript nymphs that can imitate an emergent mayfly or even caddisfly. Don’t be afraid to go big with Prince Nymphs, Copper Johns and the all-time favorite, a gold-ribbed bead-head Hare’s Ear in size 10.

The Woolly Bugger is always a good choice, but make sure it has plenty of marabou in its tail to pulsate in the clear water. Go with muted colors, not those flashabou and tinsel patterns that work well in muddy waters. Smaller sculpin imitations are also worth fishing, but add plenty of weight to them to get them deep to bigger trout.

While hand-sized trout are fun to catch and stunning to view in the twinkling alpine sunshine, there’s nothing like dredging up a 3-pound trout from the clear water of a mountain lake. Whether you keep a pan-sized fish for a camp dinner or simply snap a picture and release it back into the emerald water, any alpine trout is a trophy—not only for the season but for the ages.

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