Johnson Lake

MU 3-37, Thompson-Nicola
51.1654° N, 119.7367° 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 11 September 2026. The lake's depth is not drawn on this map.

Surface area: 276.8ha
Elevation: 1,118m
Campsites: 12; At Johnson Lake rec site

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

Trophy fish at Johnson Lake

Johnson Lake is known for trophy Rainbow trout to 5 lb.

Rainbow trout to 5 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.

Johnson Lake at a glance

Region: Thompson-Nicola
Management unit: MU 3-37
Species: Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat Trout (last recorded 1960)The newest of these fish records is from 2016.Species from the province's fish observation records.
Lake size: Medium Lake (50 - 500 ha)
Coordinates: 51.165369, -119.736713

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Gear for rainbow trout

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Fish on record at Johnson Lake

Species in the Province's fish observation records
Species	First recorded	Last recorded	Records
Rainbow Trout	1943	2016	66
Cutthroat Trout	1960	1960	1

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

Johnson Lake fishing regulations

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

Getting to Johnson Lake

40.1 km of traced road to the campground by way of Adams West-Johnson Lake FSR and Agate Bay 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: 51.165369, -119.736713

Camping and rec sites at Johnson Lake

Johnson Lake
Campsites
12 designated
To the shore
40 m

Access: BR><BR>Access to Johnson Lake is from Agate Bay Road, 5km South of Barriere. Follow Agate Bay Road for 22km before turning left onto Minnova FSR. Once on Minnova FSR, travel for 19km on the single lane unpaved unmaintained resource road. Please note that the road has many potholes and a high-clearance 4X4 vehicle is recommended.
Coordinates: 51.157776, -119.720399
The site on Recreation Sites and Trails BC

Depth chart for Johnson Lake

The Province sounded Johnson Lake and published the depth chart surveyed in 1961.

Depth chart (PDF)

The ice year at Johnson Lake, modelled

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

In the model Johnson Lake froze in 65 of the 65 winters since 1960. Freeze-up falls most years between 31 October and 14 November, and ice-off between 6 May and 24 May. The median winter freezes on 7 November and opens on 17 May.

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

Winter 2024-25 in the model: frozen from 1 November 2024 to 2 May 2025, 182 days.

We have no ice fishing regulation on file for Johnson 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.

Johnson Lake climate, 1960 to 2025

Averaged over a year, the air above Johnson Lake is 1.1 C warmer than it was in the 1960s. That is 66 years of daily readings, not a forecast.

+1.1 Csince the 1960s
0.4 Caverage year now
-0.7 Caverage year then
-10 daysbelow freezing, change

Average year at Johnson 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 Johnson 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	Fog	12° / 2°	6 km/h	dry	Steady
Thu 22 Oct	Slight rain showers	12° / 1°	9 km/h, gusts 20	0 mm	Steady
Fri 23 Oct	Overcast	6° / -1°	8 km/h, gusts 28	dry	Rising (+12.6 hPa)
Sat 24 Oct	Moderate rain	4° / 1°	2 km/h, gusts 28	2 mm	Falling (-1.6 hPa)
Sun 25 Oct	Overcast	8° / 2°	2 km/h, gusts 12	dry	Rising (+1.5 hPa)
Mon 26 Oct	Partly cloudy	10° / 1°	1 km/h, gusts 7	dry	Falling (-5.3 hPa)
Tue 27 Oct	Overcast	7° / 0°	6 km/h	dry	Steady

Open Johnson Lake in the app

Johnson Lake, in brief

What fish are in Johnson Lake?

Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat Trout (last recorded 1960). Species from the province's fish observation records.

How big is Johnson Lake?

Johnson Lake covers about 276.8 ha, by the province's Freshwater Atlas.

Which management unit is Johnson Lake in?

Johnson Lake is in MU 3-37, in the Thompson-Nicola. The BC Freshwater Fishing Regulations Synopsis is organised by management unit; check it before you go.

Trout lakes near Johnson Lake

South Barrière Lake 5 km away
East Barrière Lake 13 km away
Dixon Lake 15 km away
Forest Lake 17 km away
Baird Lake 18 km away

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