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Best cutthroat trout lakes in British Columbia

428 British Columbia waters hold cutthroat trout, 1 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 native trout of the West, named for the orange slash under its jaw. A shoreline cruiser that hunts drop-offs, inlets and rocky points for baitfish and insects.

1. Babine Lake — 610 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout, Kokanee, Lake Whitefish
2. Okanagan Lake — 794 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Lake Trout
3. Shuswap Lake — 530 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout, Kokanee, Lake Whitefish
4. Cowichan Lake — 499 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout, Brook Trout
5. Slocan Lake — 978 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout, Kokanee, Lake Whitefish
6. Great Central Lake — 820 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout, Pumpkinseed
7. Trout Lake — 820 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout, Kokanee, Lake Whitefish
8. Stave Lake — 331 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
9. Buttle Lake — 396 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat Trout
10. Upper Campbell Lake — 130 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat Trout
11. Lillooet Lake — 427 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Lake Whitefish, Cutthroat Trout
12. Kennedy Lake — 492 ft max · Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
13. Huaskin Lake — 574 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
14. Nicola Lake — 187 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Lake Whitefish, Burbot
15. Ellerslie Lake — 673 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
16. Sproat Lake — 640 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
17. Alouette Lake — 522 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Lake Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
18. Kalamalka Lake — 466 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, Lake Trout, Kokanee
19. Lois Lake — 463 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
20. Comox Lake — 358 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Brook Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
21. Loon Lake — 213 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat Trout
22. Sugar Lake — 272 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Lake Whitefish, Burbot
23. Victoria Lake — 360 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Cutthroat Trout
24. Wahleach Lake — 102 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout
25. Haslam Lake — 496 ft max · Rainbow Trout, Kokanee, Cutthroat Trout

…plus 403 more British Columbia waters holding cutthroat trout.

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When to fish cutthroat trout in British Columbia

• Spring 3–15 ft — Pre- and post-spawn cutthroat gang up at tributary mouths and cruise gravel shorelines — swing a spinner or fly through the inlet current.
• Summer 10–35 ft — Summer cutthroat hold along the first shoreline drop and off rocky points, sliding deeper as the surface warms — troll or cast the 15-30 ft edge.
• Fall 5–25 ft — Cooling water brings cutthroat back onto rocky points and gravel shoals to feed hard before winter.
• Winter 10–40 ft — Cold-tolerant like all trout — cutthroat hang on the deep shoreline drops and basin edges through the cold months.

Also in British Columbia: best largemouth bass lakes · best smallmouth bass lakes · best walleye lakes · best northern pike lakes · best crappie lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best yellow perch lakes · best lake trout lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best kokanee lakes · best lake whitefish lakes · best burbot lakes · best arctic grayling lakes · best pumpkinseed lakes · best brown bullhead lakes

Cutthroat Trout elsewhere: Québec · Montana · Wyoming · Washington · Alberta · Utah · Colorado · New Mexico · Idaho · Nevada