[abfisherman]

just new to the forum guys i have a chance to go fishing at mabel lake the wifes sister and husband have a house on the lake and invited us out there for a visit was wondering if i should bring my boat or ice fishing gear was wondering how the fishing was there and what or what not to use any advise what time of the year would be best would like to get some info about the lake how big how deep it was any tips out there to help out a newbie thanks

 

[DannyBuoy]

Hey there abfisherman , if you mean Mable lake up here in the okanagan then it is definately not frozen over and I am not even sure there is a boat launch open , the one at the Lumby side is Not as they dont plow into the park anymore and we have had alot of snow ,you would be able to put in a cartopper at the Enderby /Kingfisher side and maybe the ramp is open (check with relatives first ) because i was there for a drive a few weeks ago and it had a foot of snow on it . I dont fish that lake much in the winter for that reason ...It has a good population of Lake and Bull trout to about 15 lbs or so but the norm would be about 3 - 10 lbs and rainbows about the same with alot of small kokanee 6"-12" (food for the above)
Dan

 

[Dave W]

There's some great information to be found at "Anglers Atlas". Here's a link to the Mabel Lake pdf file.

http://www.anglersatlas.com/pdf/bcr8/mabel.pdf

Hope you find a way into the lake. It's one of my favorite big lakes. Good luck.

 

[abfisherman]

thanks for the info guys what month would you guys say would have the best fishing in the lake i have fished kootenay lake a few times would a guy use the same gear for fishing at mabel. i had good luck on kootenay with bucktail flies and those lyman lures thanks alot for the info again guys

 

[DannyBuoy]

Yes I would say lymans or apex's are your best bet as the bigger fish tend to feed on kokanee , although the fly fisher 's do quite well with leech patterns in the spring at the river mouth , as well the salmon fry come thru the lake . best months for fishing ? march - early june and then sept on , as the salmon come thru starting the end of august . I 've had best luck fishing for Lakers down deep ( 80- 120' ) and rainbows in the top 40 or 50 feet of water . hopes that helps a little
Dan

 

[Dave W]

couldn't have said it better myself. I've had pretty good luck with an assortment of apex's and lyman lures. The area north of Mabel Lake resort is pretty scenic. Nice and quiet.

 

[abfisherman]

what do you guys use for the lakers i have a good asortment of flatfish that i use for lakers in alberta i noticed on that anglers atlas the lake is real deep.dan you said you had good luck at 80-120 ft would that be on bottom or suspended in deep water will be heading out there last week of march and first week of april when the kids are on spring break is there anything for the wife and kids to do they can fish for half a day thats about it the kids are 8 and 6 girls and is there a place to stay at or near the lake thanks a lot for the info guys abfisherman

 

[Dave W]

Still pretty cold that time of year. I don't know if Mabel Lake Resort is open or not. They have a number of condos, and lake side cottages for rent, and were building a bunch more when I was there this summer. Check out http://www.mabellakeresort.com/

 

[DannyBuoy]

While I use plugs for lakers in Mable , I dont see why flatfish wouldnt work , they are kinda greedy things that tend to try to eat anything you can get in front of their faces ( dark back light belly works best ?) and yes in that 100' range on the bottom. The kids should be able to pick up small rainbows with those little 1 1/2 " apex trout killers or try flatfish ... on top or a little weight maybe orange or red/white
Where to stay? what else to do ? depends on which end the lake you are going to be at ... there is a provincial park at the Lumby end . Lake is about 30 -40 drive from town .This end is where the Shushap river flows in ... The resort that Dave refers to is kinda in the middle of the lake , where the Shushap river flows out , you would have to check what they have open that time of year for rent .. they may not open until May 1 . That lake acess is about the same 30 min from the town of Enderby . Your inlaws dont fish too much eh ? they should have some info on what to do in the area , you did say they had a house on the lake ? .. which side ? I could try to give you more info if you want, dont really know what to suggest . this posting is getting a bit long ...people are going to think I am long winded ....
Dan

 

[Dave W]

At least you're not as long winded as Ribwart ;D ;D ;D However you do sound equally as informative.