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Best rainbow trout lakes in Alberta

41 Alberta waters hold rainbow trout, 40 mapped with real state-agency depth surveys. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. The classic stocked cold-water trout. Depth is everything: rainbows follow the temperature layer they like.

1. Lac Sante — 80 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #1: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
2. Lower Kananaskis Lake — 138 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #2: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
3. Upper Kananaskis Lake — 368 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat TroutWhy #3: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
4. Cow Lake — 7 ft max · survey depth data · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Brown TroutWhy #4: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
5. Gleniffer Lake — 108 ft max · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Brown TroutWhy #5: mapped size signal; contours are approximated · no verified access record attached
6. Glenmore Reservoir — 55 ft max · survey depth data · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Brown TroutWhy #6: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 4 public access sites
7. Hastings Lake — 24 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #7: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
8. Square Lake — 125 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #8: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
9. Miquelon Lakes — 20 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #9: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
10. Blood Indian Creek Reservoir — 40 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout, Brook TroutWhy #10: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
11. Burnstick Lake — 60 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #11: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 2 public access sites
12. Grande Cache Lake — 40 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout, BurbotWhy #12: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
13. Crimson Lake — 30 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #13: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
14. Swan Lake — 40 ft max · survey depth data · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout, Brown TroutWhy #14: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
15. Obed Lake — 31 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Brown Trout, Brook TroutWhy #15: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
16. Beaver Mines Lake — 17 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat TroutWhy #16: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
17. Outpost Lake — 16 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Brook TroutWhy #17: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
18. Chrystina Lake — 30 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Brook TroutWhy #18: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 1 public access site
19. Victor Lake — 60 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout, BurbotWhy #19: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
20. Hasse Lake — 30 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #20: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
21. Payne Lake — 20 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat TroutWhy #21: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
22. Spring Lake — 30 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Brown Trout, Brook TroutWhy #22: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
23. Dillberry Lake — 35 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Yellow PerchWhy #23: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
24. Muir Lake — 18 ft max · survey depth data · Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Brown TroutWhy #24: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · no verified access record attached
25. McLeod Lake — 35 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, BurbotWhy #25: survey-backed contours receive the ranking's data-quality boost · 2 public access sites

…plus 16 more Alberta waters holding rainbow trout.

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When to fish rainbow trout in Alberta

• Spring 5–20 ft — Post-ice-out trout roam shallow; fish inflows and windblown shorelines.
• Summer 8–30 ft — Rainbows hold near cold inflows, current seams and the thermocline — find the cool water and you've found the fish.
• Fall 10–35 ft — Fall feeding on rock shoals, current and channel edges as water cools.
• Winter 8–40 ft — Trout are comfortable in cold water — one of the best winter targets; streams and tailwaters fish shallow, deep lakes hold on basin edges.

Also in Alberta: best walleye lakes · best northern pike lakes · best yellow perch lakes · best lake trout lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best lake whitefish lakes · best burbot lakes · best arctic grayling lakes · best cutthroat trout lakes · best cisco (lake herring) lakes

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