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Salmon Lake

MU 3-12, Thompson-Nicola
50.2697° N, 120.0036° W

Map of Salmon Lake: the shoreline from the BC Freshwater Atlas, the roads round it from the BC Digital Road Atlas and the traced road in.120°03′W120°02.5′W120°02′W120°01.5′W120°01′W120°00.5′W120°00′W119°59.5′W119°59′W50°15.5′N50°15.8′N50°16′N50°16.2′N50°16.5′N50°16.8′NSalmon Lake05001 kmNMap of Salmon Lake: the shoreline from the BC Freshwater Atlas, the roads round it from the BC Digital Road Atlas and the traced road in.120°01′W120°00′W119°59′W50°15′N50°15.5′N50°16′N50°16.5′N50°17′N01 kmN
WaterTraced road inRoadRough surface roadShoreline from the BC Freshwater Atlas, roads from the BC Digital Road Atlas, under the Open Government Licence, British Columbia. The lake's depth is not drawn on this map.
Surface area
160ha
Elevation
925m

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

Trophy fish at Salmon Lake

Salmon Lake is known for trophy Rainbow trout to 8 lb.

  • Rainbow trout to 8 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.

Salmon Lake at a glance

Region
Thompson-Nicola
Management unit
MU 3-12
Species
Rainbow TroutThe newest of these fish records is from 2025.Species from the province's fish observation records.
Lake size
Medium Lake (50 - 500 ha)
Ice fishing
Closed to ice fishing
Coordinates
50.2697, -120.0036

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Gear for rainbow trout

Lines, leaders, lures and flies for rainbow trout, searched on Amazon.ca.

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What people catch at Salmon Lake

Stocked Pennask rainbows on the Douglas Lake Road. Fishing with Rod puts most of them at 1 to 2 lb with the odd fish of 3 or 4 lb, and suggests a chironomid hung several feet off the bottom in about 15 feet of water.

  • Rainbow Trout Stocked
    Typically 1 to 2 lb
    Bigger fish: occasionally 3 or 4 lb
    Source: Fishing with Rod

A chironomid suspended several feet above the bottom in about 15 feet of water. Source: Fishing with Rod

The rule that shapes it. No Ice Fishing; rainbow trout daily quota = 2; artificial fly only, bait ban, single hook. Source: Province of British Columbia

Fish on record at Salmon Lake

Species in the Province's fish observation records
SpeciesFirst recordedLast recordedRecords
Rainbow Trout1949202543

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

How to fish Salmon Lake

Best times of year at Salmon Lake

  • May - June
  • September - October

Salmon Lake fishing regulations

No Ice Fishing; rainbow trout daily quota = 2; artificial fly only, bait ban, single hook. Source: Province of British Columbia

Getting to Salmon Lake

32.9 km of traced road to the shore by way of campground access and Douglas Lake Rd. The road at the end is a loose surface. It stops 300 m short of the shore.

The road route traced to Lake shore at Salmon Lake, 32.9 km.Start of the traceLake shore5 km
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: 50.2697, -120.0036

The ice year at Salmon Lake, modelled

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

In the model Salmon Lake froze in 65 of the 65 winters since 1960. Freeze-up falls most years between 11 November and 25 November, and ice-off between 7 April and 27 April. The median winter freezes on 18 November and opens on 19 April.

Modelled ice season at Salmon Lake: freeze-up most winters between 11 November and 25 November, ice-off between 7 April and 27 April.OctNovDecJanFebMarAprMayJunFreeze-upIce-offabout 151 days in the median winter

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

Winter 2024-25 in the model: frozen from 23 November 2024 to 6 April 2025, 134 days.

Salmon Lake is closed to ice fishing.

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.

Winterkill at Salmon Lake

Salmon Lake climate, 1960 to 2025

Averaged over a year, the air above Salmon Lake is 0.9 C warmer than it was in the 1960s. That is 66 years of daily readings, not a forecast.

  • +0.9 Csince the 1960s
  • 5.5 Caverage year now
  • 4.6 Caverage year then
  • -13 daysbelow freezing, change
Average year at Salmon Lakedegrees C, yearly mean
3 C5 C8 C1960198020002020

each yearthe trend across 1960 to 2025

Days below freezingdays a year averaging under 0 C
591061521960198020002020

each yearthe trend across 1960 to 2025

This week at Salmon 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.

DaySkyHigh / lowWindRainPressure
Tue 20 OctFog10° / -3°9 km/h, gusts 14drySteady
Wed 21 OctOvercast17° / 4°10 km/h, gusts 31dryFalling (-6.6 hPa)
Thu 22 OctOvercast13° / 5°9 km/hdryFalling (-1.9 hPa)
Fri 23 OctOvercast8° / 0°19 km/h, gusts 32dryRising (+12.6 hPa)
Sat 24 OctOvercast9° / -2°9 km/hdryRising (+6.8 hPa)
Sun 25 OctOvercast7° / -3°8 km/hdryRising (+2.5 hPa)
Mon 26 OctOvercast12° / -2°8 km/hdryFalling (-1.5 hPa)

Open Salmon Lake in the app

Salmon Lake, in brief

What fish are in Salmon Lake?

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

Which management unit is Salmon Lake in?

Salmon Lake is in MU 3-12, in the Thompson-Nicola. The BC Freshwater Fishing Regulations Synopsis is organised by management unit; check it before you go.

Trout lakes near Salmon Lake

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

Reading the water