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Best rainbow trout lakes in Maine

10 Maine waters hold rainbow trout, 9 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. Moosehead Lake — 240 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Muskellunge
2. Flagstaff Lake — 48 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout
3. Sebago Lake — 314 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
4. China Lake — 92 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
5. Schoodic Lake — 187 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
6. Branch Lake — 124 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
7. Green Lake — 170 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
8. Moose Pond — 50 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Rainbow Trout
9. Megunticook Lake — 66 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout
10. Kennebec River — 12 ft max · Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout, Landlocked Salmon

When to fish rainbow trout in Maine

• 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 Maine: best largemouth bass lakes · best smallmouth bass lakes · best northern pike lakes · best lake trout lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best landlocked salmon lakes · best chain pickerel lakes · best white perch lakes

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