Best Springtime Tactics on Omak Lake

The healing waters of Omak Lake soothe my body and soul every spring when the water begins to warm. The warmer times of spring signals the beginning for the resident Lahontan cutthroat trout to start moving closer to the shore of Omak Lake located outside of Omak, WA.  When the water temperature and daylight hit a certain mark, the giant fish begin to move into the shallows making them a targetable species with a fly rod from shore.  When this happens, it is not uncommon to see pods of fish moving around in three to four feet of water.  Lahontan cutthroats feed primarily on small baitfish with the primary baitfish being the red-side shiner. The other baitfish that they will feed on are, sculpins, peamouth chubs, and bridgelip suckers. Talk to anyone that has fished this lake much and I'm sure they will tell you about catching a 20-plus inch Lahontan that had the tail of another fish sticking out of its mouth. Whether or not these fish are more actively feeding or are hitting things because they are in an agitated pre-spawn mood, is up for debate.

How to Fish Omak Lake Shore?

If the fish have yet to start cruising the shallow waters, the best springtime tactics on Omak Lake to use begin with casting out to the drop off which disappears in 10 to 15 feet of water. Locating these points if you are fishing from on or just out from the shoreline are not hard to spot. Just look for the color change of the lake bottom from light to dark. Cast 15 to 20 feet out into the darker water and let your fly sink down to the bottom, then strip the fly back in.  You will have to play around with a few different stripping styles until you find what will trigger the fish into a strike.

When stripping a fly, the type and size of fly will dictate how you retrieve it. For example, if I am using a minnow style streamer, I try to impart a side to side movement to this style of fly. I try to give it the look of a scared or escaping baitfish. Some of the streamers I use are un-weighted, and a little trick I use with these is if I get a strike but no hookup, is that I will stop and do nothing for up to 45 seconds. A little over half the time when I do this, I will have another hit resulting in a solid hookup. I can only assume that by stopping I am giving the illusion of a stunned baitfish from the first strike.

Stripping fly? Fill up the box here.

When using streamers or leech patterns that are tied on a jig hook, the retrieve action is more of an up and down angulating look. This type of action can drive the fish nuts a lot of times, and the strikes are hard and solid resulting in good hookups in the top of the mouth. If you chose to use an indicator, with a balanced leech or chironomid/midge pattern, I would recommend starting your depth at around eight feet. Remember, you are working the drop offs that start at about 10 feet, so you want to be just up off the bottom. A little bit of surface chop will help with imparting movement into your suspended fly. If there is not much surface chop then you will need to handle the movement yourself by using very small, slow retrieves.

Once the fish start cruising the shallow waters, one of the styles of fishing is to sight cast to these fish. I can tell you this from my own experience and talking to other fly anglers, there is a learning curve to get through. Simply put, if you can see them, they can see you. Or, to be more accurate, they can see your movement. What has worked for me, is to let the fish pass by then to cast well enough ahead of them at a 45-degree angle. Let your fly settle on or close to the bottom before you start your retrieve. When working the shallow waters like this you really don’t need a heavy weighted fly here. An intermediate line, short stink tip line, or even a floating line will work. On the two sink type lines, I would keep your leader short on the floating line -a 7 ½ foot will do the trick.

Can't see them? Costas help.

Again, the weight of your fly will dictate what line will work best. I normally don’t use an indicator in the shallows but if you do set it according to the depth, you’ll be in. When fishing shallow waters, I downsize my flies and use very lightly weighted ones or no weight at all. Like any style of fishing, use what works for you and what you are confident in. Going back to what I said earlier, too much movement is your enemy when fishing in the shallows if the water is very clear and the fish can see you.

What Gear do I use when Fishing Omak Lake?

I set up two rods when I’m fishing the shore area. I set up 9’ or 10 foot 6-weight with a floating line, mainly for indicator fishing. I’ll use a slip indicator along with 10 feet of 3X mono indicator leader and about two feet of fluorocarbon tippet.  The other rod I use is a 9’ 8-weight. Now, depending on if I’m casting out past the drop off, or in the shallower waters close to shore, will dictate what line I’ll be using. If I’m working the drop off, I’ll set up with a type 3 sink tip line or a level sinking line. I like to use the 8-weight rod because it handles the heaver lines and flies. I use this to get out to the drop off. When fishing the shallow water, I'll use an intermediate line. My leader set up is usually five feet of fluorocarbon and 18-inch fluorocarbon tippet. The size I use runs anywhere from 0X to 3X. You might ask why I would use an 8-weight rod. There are some large Lahontan cutthroats in this lake. The state record of approximately 19 pounds was taken here. I have talked to the hatchery workers that gather the broodstock and they have reported handling fish over 36 inches.

What are the two best rods to fly fish Northwest Lakes? Read this before you go.

Best Flies to use at Omak Lake?

Here are a few of my favorites:

• -Sculpzilla, size 8
• -Keller’s She Demon Bugger in white, size 6
• -Keller’s Montana Mouthwash in olive or white, size 6
• -Coffey’s Sparkle Minnow in sculpin or white, size 6
• -Carlton’s Gulpin Sculpin in olive or tan, size 6
• -Empie’s Deadly Shinner, size 8
• -Sculpinator in olive or natural, size 6
• -Black, olive or white #8-#10 Crystal Buggers
• -Leeches, TFP Balanced Squirrel Leech in black or purple, size 8
• -Balanced Leech in olive or black, size 8
• -Pig Pen Leech in olive or tan, size 8
• -Chironomids, black, red, or brown, size 12 and 14

If you could only fish one fly...which would you choose? Read this.

Fishing from a Boat at Omak Lake

The number one thing about fishing from a boat is it allows you to get to places on the lake that has no shore access. Another good point about using a boat is having the availability of electronics. This will allow you to locate fish a lot quicker at times. When we are fishing out of a boat, we head to these inaccessible areas that are in that 20-feet depth range. Then, we work the area from that depth on into shore. In this instance, we use the same setups and flies as we would when shore fishing.

Currently, the lake is limited on boat launches right now. The main launch at Mission Bay is out of commission until further notice. The one at Nicholson Beach is doable depending on boat size. Keep in mind that kayaks and inflatables can be launched with ease at both ends of the lake.

We hope to see you on the water. Omak Lake is an amazing and uncrowded fishery filled with giant Lahontan cutthroat trout.