Gwen Lake

MU 3-13, Thompson-Nicola
50.0046° N, 120.7573° W

WaterTraced road inRoadRough surface roadRec siteShoreline from the BC Freshwater Atlas, roads from the BC Digital Road Atlas, under the Open Government Licence, British Columbia. Rec site position from BC Recreation Sites and Trails, checked 9 September 2026. The lake's depth is not drawn on this map.

Surface area: 19.5ha
Elevation: 1,230m
Campsites: 2; At Gwen Lake rec site

Open Gwen Lake in the appThe 7-day forecast, max depth and wildfire smoke check, on the lake's own coordinate.

Trophy fish at Gwen Lake

Gwen Lake is known for trophy Rainbow trout to 15 lb.

Rainbow trout to 15 lb

Trophy sizes this lake is known for, not a typical catch. They are historical records from our own big fish list, with no date on file, not recent catches.

Gwen Lake at a glance

Region: Thompson-Nicola
Management unit: MU 3-13
Species: Rainbow Trout, Redside Shiner (last recorded 1958)The newest of these fish records is from 2025.Species from the province's fish observation records.
Lake size: Small Water (< 50 ha)
Coordinates: 50.004552, -120.757316

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Gear for rainbow trout

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What people catch at Gwen Lake

A remote Pennask rainbow lake south of Merritt, stocked as fry rather than as catchables, so the fish are lake grown. They run 14 to 24 inches. It is not an easy lake and the road in wants clearance.

Rainbow Trout Stocked
Typically 14 to 24 inches
Bigger fish: three year old fish can be quite large
Pennask strain, stocked as 1 to 2 gram fry and catchable after one or two years. Not an easy lake, and the road in wants a high clearance vehicle.
Source: Fishing with Rod

Fish on record at Gwen Lake

Species in the Province's fish observation records
Species	First recorded	Last recorded	Records
Rainbow Trout	1958	2025	45
Redside Shiner	1958	1958	1

A year is when the Province last recorded the fish here, not a statement that it is caught today.

Gwen Lake fishing regulations

We have no lake specific regulations on file for Gwen Lake yet.

Getting to Gwen Lake

16.2 km of traced road to the campground by way of unsigned, Veale Rd and Coldwater Rd. The road at the end is a rough surface.

The route traced over the BC Digital Road Atlas. A trace is a line on a map, not a report on the road: check conditions before you drive it.

Coordinates: 50.004552, -120.757316

Camping and rec sites at Gwen Lake

Gwen Lake
Campsites
2 designated
To the shore
68 m

Access: This recreation site is located south of Merritt. From the Coquihalla Highway, access is via Exit 276 (Comstock Road). Proceed 5.5 km along the gravel road and then turn left. Proceed another 1 km on a very rough 4x4 road until arriving at the recreation site. A steep drop into the campsite at the lakeshore.
Coordinates: 50.003974, -120.761325
The site on Recreation Sites and Trails BC

The ice year at Gwen Lake, modelled

Modelled from air temperature, not an ice report. It says nothing about whether ice will hold you.

In the model Gwen Lake froze in 65 of the 65 winters since 1960. Freeze-up falls most years between 28 October and 8 November, and ice-off between 8 May and 1 June. The median winter freezes on 2 November and opens on 22 May.

the middle half of modelled winters the median ice cover in the median winter

Winter 2024-25 in the model: frozen from 18 November 2024 to 23 April 2025, 156 days.

We have no ice fishing regulation on file for Gwen Lake either way. Check the current BC Freshwater Fishing Regulations Synopsis before you plan a trip.

Whether a lake is open to ice fishing says nothing about whether its ice will hold you. Ice conditions vary year to year and across a single lake. Check locally before going out, every time.

Gwen Lake climate, 1960 to 2025

Averaged over a year, the air above Gwen Lake is 1.4 C warmer than it was in the 1960s. That is 66 years of daily readings, not a forecast.

+1.4 Csince the 1960s
3.5 Caverage year now
2.1 Caverage year then
-18 daysbelow freezing, change

Average year at Gwen Lakedegrees C, yearly mean

each yearthe trend across 1960 to 2025

Days below freezingdays a year averaging under 0 C

each yearthe trend across 1960 to 2025

This week at Gwen Lake

The forecast on this lake's own coordinate, refreshed through the day. The app reads these seven days for fishing and scores each one.

Day	Sky	High / low	Wind	Rain	Pressure
Wed 21 Oct	Partly cloudy	15° / 0°	11 km/h, gusts 21	dry	Steady
Thu 22 Oct	Overcast	12° / -1°	14 km/h, gusts 44	dry	Rising (+1.5 hPa)
Fri 23 Oct	Partly cloudy	6° / -5°	13 km/h, gusts 48	dry	Rising (+13.6 hPa)
Sat 24 Oct	Slight snow	2° / -5°	6 km/h, gusts 18	2 mm	Falling (-1.1 hPa)
Sun 25 Oct	Slight snow	7° / 0°	5 km/h, gusts 20	1 mm	Steady
Mon 26 Oct	Overcast	9° / -2°	2 km/h, gusts 8	dry	Falling (-5.3 hPa)
Tue 27 Oct	Overcast	9° / -3°	8 km/h, gusts 52	dry	Rising (+1.6 hPa)

Open Gwen Lake in the app

Gwen Lake, in brief

What fish are in Gwen Lake?

Rainbow Trout. Species from the province's fish observation records.

How big is Gwen Lake?

Gwen Lake covers about 19.5 ha, by the province's Freshwater Atlas.

Which management unit is Gwen Lake in?

Gwen Lake is in MU 3-13, in the Thompson-Nicola. The BC Freshwater Fishing Regulations Synopsis is organised by management unit; check it before you go.

Trout lakes near Gwen Lake

Kane Lakes 6 km away
Harmon Lake 6 km away
Englishmen Lake 6 km away
Menzies Lake 7 km away
Corbett Lake 10 km away

All 342 lakes in the Thompson-Nicola, with today's conditions on each.