Kinbasket Lake

[Erik]

Has anyone ever fished Kinbasket Lake near the Valemount side? Just wondering how good the lake is and whether or not it is worth a visit as a side-trip to Jasper? I never hear people talking about this lake but it looks like it could hold some serious fish?

[BeeGuy]

with a boat?

[Bhflyfisher]

There are bulls in there, but i know this time of year, they start going into the creeks in the area to move to the headwaters to spawn. I remember driving through to the coast with my dad when i was young and always catching a couple good sized fish out of those creeks.

[greylynx]

Do a search on this forum. We have some fellow AO members that fish Kinbasket Lake... with boats.

One thing about Kinbasket Lake. The storms that can blow in are absolutely brutal.

[Erik]

with a boat?

Yes, with a boat.

[bardfromedson]

it has lots of kokanee as well. i think you can only keep them until aug. 1 or something like that. lots of nice rainbow as well. also watch out for dead heads. they flooded the valley years ago and lots of lumber floats up every year. i havn't fished it since i was a kid but a buddy of mine has done quite well there. i have wanted to make it back up.

[billycap]

The water in kinbasket is very high this year... There is miles of debris and yes you need a pretty solid boat and some gear to get u down 20-30 ft deep at least to start hooking into bigger stuff. Lots of small kokanee, white fish and rainbows.. large bulls and dollies.. medium sized ling

Dont forget your tent and shotgun as it takes awhile to get to some of the best free camping sites...the road is now closed at the 38km (east side)

The Valemount marina is good place to start and they do a small town fishing derby every year ( This years is sept 1st 2nd)

Here are some pics of the lake last week on my 60km trek down to foster arm protected area

[mikep]

Hi Billycap,

Do you know if there are free camping sites in the south as well? Is this mostly crown land?

Never camped where there are grizzlies... is this something i need to worry about over there? I keep a clean camp and follow strict bear rules and never had a black bear show up...

thanks,
mike

[deschambault]

I've been ther mid October and we caught good size rainbows near surface, this time of year you likely (not fished this time of year but have Kootenay) should be down 100 ft or so.

[mikep]

wow... good thing i started asking questions!

i just moved here from Ontario and never fished this area at all... didn't realize they'd be that deep.

Do i need down riggers or will dipsy divers do?

mike poulin

[billycap]

Hi Billycap,

Do you know if there are free camping sites in the south as well? Is this mostly crown land?

Never camped where there are grizzlies... is this something i need to worry about over there? I keep a clean camp and follow strict bear rules and never had a black bear show up...

thanks,
mike

Hey mike, Yes there is nothing but crown land around the lake... Its not the matter of being private/crown that makes the difference but finding a flat enough area to pitch a tent that can take hours. As for not bringing a gun with you.... bad idea! Not that the bears here are overly aggressive.... Most have never had any human contact and dont have any fear of you at all. The berries are in full production right now so chances are you wont have any bears raiding your food. The biggest problem with the lake is the water... not only is it full of dead heads and floating bark but if the wind kicks up you better have found a super sheltered bay... If you park your boat on shore in a bad spot and a night storm blows, you will wake up to a boat smashed to pieces. Also on the north end the human aspect of things stops abruptly around the 40km waterfall... I spent 4 days/nights and never saw a single person. That being said if you get hurt back there or have engine trouble on your boat you will be literally up !@$# creek without a paddle. I run a 40 horse merc but always bring my 6 horse kicker for just in case.

Hope this helps n be careful out on the basket as its one of the more dangerous lakes ive been on. A small price to pay for unlimited fishing hiking and camping. You wanna enjoy pure solitude and a "real" bush experiance than this is the place for you.

Ps: Dipsey divers work well here

[mikep]

hi Billycap,

Great advice and info, thank you so much!

So, very slow does it then, extra engine, sat phone, SPOT device.

Being from Ontario until just a few weeks ago, never had a need for a gun due to bears.... But those were only small bears (not grizzlies) so with a clean camp and bear bangers, i never had to worry.

North of 40km waterfall would be my destination as i surely do prefer the real bush experience so this place sounds perfect for me...

But, not this first time around... seems like i need to slowly work my way up... maybe i'll stay at the resort on the south end and explorer northwards from there... maybe even do a few over-nighters (after a scouting run) to start building some experience.

Is there a smaller lake in the area that you might suggest which still has back country camping but not as dangerous of water?

thanks a bunch!
mike

[billycap]

hi Billycap,


Is there a smaller lake in the area that you might suggest which still has back country camping but not as dangerous of water?

thanks a bunch!
mike

Where are you driving from and what kind of boat?

[mikep]

Where are you driving from and what kind of boat?

calgary, with jimmy 4x4, towing 17.5' princecraft 115 optimax and a good amount of gear.

6-7 hours max'ish..

mike

[billycap]

calgary, with jimmy 4x4, towing 17.5' princecraft 115 optimax and a good amount of gear.

6-7 hours max'ish..

mike

That sounds like u have all you will need.. I dont want to mislead you as im sure the southern half is just as wild as the northern... There are 3 main boat launches (Valemount marina), (Mica dam) and down by golden area. Get 20-30 km away from any of these and im sure you will find what your lookin for. When i refer to the 40km waterfall thats 40km south of valemount. Seems alot closer to drive to the southern end of the lake for you... I hear bush arm is awesome! The locals tell me if u follow the shoreline and do a complete loop of the lake its well over 700km round trip..

Dont forget to bring a your goldpan!

[billycap]

For anyone interested in a little derby/camping action next weekend
Here is the link:

http://www.visitvalemount.ca/Events/ValemountFishingDerby.html

[Sled Dog]

I haven't fished it for several years but it was a good fishery and probably still is. Greylynx is right - be very careful to keep an eye on the weather. I got caught in a storm and ran out of gas fighting swells to get back to the dock -nearly swamped the boat. The wind funnels down the valley and kicks things up very quickly

[TROLLER]

The water in kinbasket is very high this year... There is miles of debris and yes you need a pretty solid boat and some gear to get u down 20-30 ft deep at least to start hooking into bigger stuff. Lots of small kokanee, white fish and rainbows.. large bulls and dollies.. medium sized ling

Dont forget your tent and shotgun as it takes awhile to get to some of the best free camping sites...the road is now closed at the 38km (east side)

The Valemount marina is good place to start and they do a small town fishing derby every year ( This years is sept 1st 2nd)

Here are some pics of the lake last week on my 60km trek down to foster arm protected area

How much spare gas are you packing for that kind of trip?

[billycap]

I have 45L and 25L boat tanks. I also pack 2-25L jerry cans and a 10L small tank hooked up to my 6 horse hose/ball. The trip from the valemount marina to foster arm takes me about 6 hours(one way) + several days fishing and exploring and my total fuel usage was just shy of 75L. Im only averaging around 9-11kph between all the dead heads and having a full boat. Heading out tomorrow on the lake prospecting with my brother for a couple days, Ill try and take a few hours to catch some fish as well.

[billycap]

Had a great weekend out on the lake. Managed to get a few buckets threw the pan and still had enough time to catch some fish. Good adventures all around

[BeeGuy]

eh great pics and fish. looks like a cool place to do some exploring

[jsergeew]

My planning is complete, we will be leaving on july 28th at noon from Valemont
and hopefully arriving at the camp ground close to golden in 5 days. i will take lots of pictures to share.

[wildwoods]

Please do. This lake haunts me. Would love to conquer it one day when my boys grow up

[Markstene18]

Any tips on fishing near golden this time of year thanks

[deschambault]

I have fished it a couple of times and would advise using the same as Kootenay - Apex, Lyman, Croc spoons etc. Later in the fall bucktails and side planers are the way to go. You might set your VHS radio on 68, most guys use that channel.

[Gordoats26]

I was out there a couple weeks ago around the bush arm. My boat was having issues so I spent most my time there getting it running but fishing was slow did manage to catch one little rainbow the day we fished

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[Catman1]

I'm heading there for two weeks to the Valemount side for fishing and camping. Is there a place to buy gas on the water ?? I have a 19 ft bay liner. Heading down end of July. Thanks

[billycap]

Its an hour round trip to get gas in town. The marina does not sell anything but memberships as far as i know.

[Catman1]

Thanks for the info. So best to pack a bunch of jerry cans.

[EZM]

Any recent reports for the lake - I'm thinking of getting out there in a couple weeks to try a new lake out ( launching at Valemount ).

Any reports or pointer to good shorelines to troll (or areas to try) would be appreciated !!!!

Thanks in Advance.

[LutherDLG]

Any recent reports for the lake - I'm thinking of getting out there in a couple weeks to try a new lake out ( launching at Valemount ).

Any reports or pointer to good shorelines to troll (or areas to try) would be appreciated !!!!

Thanks in Advance.

This thread also get me really excited to check out Kinbasket. Will be interested to follow along on the responses you get!

[Gordoats26]

Any recent reports for the lake - I'm thinking of getting out there in a couple weeks to try a new lake out ( launching at Valemount ).

Any reports or pointer to good shorelines to troll (or areas to try) would be appreciated !!!!

Thanks in Advance.
I went there for my first time 2 weeks ago. We went in from the Golden side. My boat decided to act up so we only spent 1 day on the lake so I could get my engine looked at. We fished the bush arm and it was quite slow only landed 1 rainbow and didn't really mark a whole lot on the fish finder. It is a big lake and I am sure if a person spent some time you would find some big fish. We caught the rainbow on a bucktail. Sorry I couldn't be of more help. The lake is absolutely beautiful http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160708/797e71b5dbf17233d3fb7cfa34cd5f79.jpghttp://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20160708/8f7a5619ec721f15665f2b58d5af8b55.jpg

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[billycap]

EZM, just depends on how far you want to go, how many days your spending ,what kind of boat you have and if your planning on camping lakeside or campground/marina.

[EZM]

EZM, just depends on how far you want to go, how many days your spending ,what kind of boat you have and if your planning on camping lakeside or campground/marina.

I am flexible but 3-4 days or so on the water would be ideal.

I was thinking of staying on shore somewhere near (or right in) Valemount and launching every morning and spending a day on the water.

My boat is a 18.5 ft Lund Tyee with a 150 Honda - it's deep, heavy, solid and capable for a little boat of that size. I have had it out in some pretty choppy weather and it has been outstanding.

In terms of range I'm thinking we are talking 250 km safely - I can cruise at 80% throttle @ 60 km/hr (where it's reasonable on fuel consumption) so going 100 km in one direction, trolling around, and back, all in one day shouldn't be out of the question. Obviously, If I'm doing 90 minutes one way, and missing 3 hours of fishing time, I'm hoping the fishing is worth the travel, of course.

The boat has 2 completely isolated and independent GPS systems, will have a VHF on board, and all the safety equipment/backup I will need - as I understand this lake can be devoid of other boats/people.

I also have down riggers and gear capable of trolling deep and all the lyman lures, apexes, etc... a guy would want - and I'm old enough to have experience using the stuff (having done it wrong for the first 10 years or so - lol).

That's what I'm dealing with - so any advice you can provide would be appreciated. Nothing like getting a helping hand on a new body of water to make a trip a little more successful.

My boat is also open to having out with us for a day if you want to show us around a bit, or if you want to meet and chat over a beer or coffee.

It's a beautiful area that I've passed through lots of times over the years and you are lucky to live there - I am envious.

[billycap]

Pulling your boat each night is a good idea. The lake is around 70%ish full by the looks of things and i didnt see too many deadheads but the will be coming and soon. To have a boat that will do 60km/h must be awesome! I would highly recommend you dont go much faster than half that. Many of the larger trees are almost fully waterlogged and float just below the surface. There is an extremely shallow rock point that goes from 50ft to 1ft in a couple boat lengths at the mouth of bulldog ck so stay to the right when you leave the marina. Never fished below 30ft deep with the gear i have but ive drooled over many a 1000+ kokanee school sitting down at 125+ft. If your trolling deep be prepared to lose lots of tackle unless you plot out a route first. Random rock formations that belong on a mountain side and not in a lake exist all over. The lake bottom holds no structure at all and the fish seem to feed in numbers around large mats of floating bark and deadheads. Large bulls are scattered throughout but i find i catch more of them close to shore. Rainbows in excess of 5lbs are rare. Kokanee are very plentiful in later summer when they start to form up for spawning but few ever go over a pound. Be advised the fishing regulations change at fosters arm area. The weather this year has been fairly poor so make sure you have some overnight gear in case you have to crash camp in one of the 3 major bays and wait out bad weather. Early morning is the magic hour, evenings are hit or miss. Be smart have roe!
Drop me a pm a couple days before departure and ill see if i cant get my boat out for a couple days. I camped in a sheltered small bay in aug last summer. Woke up to a freak storm crushing my tent. Only things i had in the tent was my pjs, shotgun and my bedding. Pointed my flashlight down the bank into the water and it looked like a washing machine. All my gear, gas and dry goods were deepsix. The only parts sticking out of the water on my 16ft landing craft was the top few inches of the steering wheel and the bimimi top. Then the giant rollers came in as i got a ringside view of my baby full of water getting lifted 6-8ft in the air then crashing down on rock. Pounded in the wheel covers so badly and i had to beat them off with hammer and chisel to free the landing gear. Play safe out there. Kinbasket is a beauty but she has the worst temper of any lake going.

[EZM]

Sounds great thanks for the advice.

I won't go bombing around at 60 km if there are deadheads around .... no point in taking a swim.

If the fishing is decent around the marina area of the lake - and we have to navigate slowly - no big deal - I can troll around and record/map the lake for a subsequent pass over areas that hold fish.

The mapping software is outstanding for these lakes ..... here a mid lake reef .... pretty cool to be able to swing around and drop your gear on a line adjacent to the reef area ...... seems to be where the fish tend to be.

[slamilton]

I was out last weekend for the first time. Great place but found the fishing pretty slow. I didnt go out deep, mostly just trolling around shore. Wife had a big one on near a point in about 15m but never got to see it. I caught one bow casting from shore with a crocodile. Had a few other hits while trolling but not great, however, nice area and nice to explore somewhere new without the crowds. This was the southern area around Esplanade.

[Catman1]

i see kinbasket flows into the Columbia river , are we allowed to fish in that river ? Tried checking the regs but just got confused.

[Joe Black]

Opposite. Columbia flows into kin basket. I do believe you can fish it. Not sure of the regs, but it runs pretty dirty til mid August.

[Markstene18]

Hey guys me and the wife went out to kinbasket lake for 3 nights fished all day everyday,July 16-19. Stayed at kinbasket lake resort so nice, great people running he place.Didn't have much luck trolling just small Kokanee so I pulled into a steam flowing into the lake. We had none stop action probably caught 30 fish on the fly rod up to 4 lb 6 oz. the wife caught the biggest one on a 5 of diamonds it weighed in at 5lb 4 oz. kept one to try the fish was delicious and let the rest go. Thanks for the tips billy cap