- East Lake Resort Launch
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At a 6,000 foot elevation, these volcanic lakes stay pretty cold throughout the year. I was told some years the ice doesn't melt until late April or early May. With a good forecast ahead, I packed up my truck and kayak and I hit the road for a three day adventure. I ended up renting a nice little cabin at East Lake Resort. Most of the crowds had come and gone over Memorial Day Weekend and the resort was pretty empty for my Tuesday through Friday stay.
I read up all I could before taking the trip. There's not a lot of information out there on East and Paulina Lake. I figured folks were trying to keep this secret gem to themselves. Upon arriving, I could see why. Both East Lake and Paulina Lake are equally beautiful. Crystal clear blue water, snow capped mountains and the remnants of lava flow from a few thousand years ago are a few things to appreciate about this lake. As for the fishing, most of my information came from stories I had read Rick Arnold's website http://www.trophytroutguide.com (who I coincidentally met at the resort my last night) . Rick has caught some trophy trout over the years. Don't believe me? Check out his website.
- East Lake Kayak View
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It was 2pm when I arrived which left me several hours to explore the lake. I couldn't help but notice fish boiling at the surface of the lake. There was hatch everywhere. I only wish I had brought my fly rod! My kayak in the water and lead-core line in the water behind me, I trolled a jointed Rapala close to shore where I was seeing fish boiling. It took me about an hour to finally hook up with a fish. My light weight Lamiglas Kokanee Rod bent over fighting this crazy fish. It wasn't fighting like a brown and when it broke water I knew it was a rainbow. Not just any rainbow, the state stocked East Lake with Blackwater Rainbows out of Canada. They are known for eating invasive tui chubs that have overpopulated the lake. This one had no problem taking down my large Rapala. A quick photo and a release.
- Blackwater Rainbow Trout
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I'll have to admit, it was frustrating seeing all these fish boiling on hatch at the surface and very few were taking interest to my presentation. I dropped my line down deeper in the water column as I worked around half the lake. I fished until dark finally hooking into a beautiful brown just as the daylight was fading. A few head shakes and deep runs the closer he came to the kayak - he was now in my net. Tomorrow was another day.
- East Lake Brown
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I woke up with the morning light about 5:30am. The temperature was 43 degrees so I decided to put on my Kokatat dry suit to keep warm on the water. The lake was like glass with the morning fog fading around the outskirts of the lake. I had a full day ahead of me - a chance to really dial in this fishery!
- Eastlake Panoramic
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This day would prove to be like the previous but I spent a good 12 hours fishing landing 3 browns and two rainbows. I would occasionally take a break from trolling and cast Rapalas against the shoreline where several fish were rising for hatch coming off the lake. A couple of rainbows took my Rapala and acrobatically danced across the surface of the water.
- Brad & his Brown
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- Pretty colored Brown Trout
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It was now the middle of the afternoon. The sun was glaring down on the lake. The browns and rainbows were not biting. There were a few power boats out and they all appeared to be targeting kokanee. While I didn't drive all this way to catch kokanee, I was curious about all the fish I was marking on the bottom. I put on a Little Cleo spoon and dropped it down to see who was there. Within minutes I had a nice 11 inch kokanee fluttering at the end of my line. Over the course of an hour I'll bet I landed 25 to 30 fish. A mix of kokanee and Atlantic Salmon. You were allowed to keep 5, so I kept my 5 largest. One being 14.5"!
- Atlantic Salmon
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It was now 3pm and 80 degrees. I sunburned, sweaty and pooped. I made my way back to the cabin for some food and a rest before the evening bite. As I was taking gear out of my truck a gentleman in the cabin next to me was getting his boat ready to hit the water. He had asked how I had done fishing and introduced himself as Rick Arnold. I confessed to him that I had read his reports on his website just days before. Rick was kind enough to share some of his knowledge of the lake, having guided on if for years. He encouraged me to move into deeper water and away from the shore. I hit the water about 5pm and moved deeper. Within twenty minutes I had landed two browns. By the end of the evening, I landed another 5 browns and two nice rainbows! It was a great way to end the trip. While I didn't land any trophies, all my browns and rainbows were 2 to 5 lbs . I knew Rick was going to be fishing the lake for a few more days. I peaked at his website on Saturday and saw that he caught an 11lb brown http://www.trophytroutguide.com/news/06_01_15.html! Amazing fish.
- Nice Brown
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