Medical Lake Depth Map & Fishing Spots (WA)

Hatch outlook

Callibaetis (Speckled Dun)Active window

Typical here: Aug 15 – Sep 15 · the smaller fall brood

nymphthe hours before the midday emergence — nymphs rise off the weed tops in a vertical zigzag that can take hours — sources split between slow 2–4 inch strips with long pauses and a quicker steady retrieve; carry both speeds
dunmidday, roughly 11am into early afternoon
spinnermid-to-late-morning falls

Trout browse the weed-bed edges knocking nymphs loose, then cruise the flats sipping duns at midday — the marquee western lake mayfly.

The midday emergence puts cruisers over weed flats in under 20 ft: a casting bubble with a #14 Callibaetis nymph retrieved dead-slow with pauses is the honest match. Between hatch hours, small spoons and #1 inline spinners along the weed edges and drop-offs pick off the same fish.

The event happens over weed flats and weed-bed edges in 20 ft of water or less

Chironomids (stillwater midges)Active window

Typical here: May 1 – Oct 31

nymphearly morning, start of the day — fish the bloodworm ON the bottom — 4–6 inches off the mud before the emergence starts
pupathe cool morning hours are prime — as the emergence builds, slide the pupa up to 12–15 inches off bottom under the indicator; a little wind chop does the jigging

Concentrates by DEPTH BAND and mud type, not a fixed spot: roughly 20–25 ft in spring, deeper midsummer, in against the feeder creeks in summer heat, 5–25 ft in fall. Match the band.

This one translates almost perfectly: a slip float with a 1/64–1/100 oz midge-pattern jig set 4–15 inches off bottom over a mud flat, dead-sticked with the chop doing the work. Depth control is everything — no moving lure imitates a hanging pupa; the float rig IS the technique.

The event happens over open mud flats alongside weedlines, channels and basin edges; feeder-creek mouths in summer heat

Water boatman fall flightsActive window

Typical here: Aug 25 – Oct 10 · peaks on crisp, bright fall days after the first cold snap

adultmiddday-ish on calm, sunny fall days — the fishable moment is the splashdown: boatmen dive in headfirst trailing an air bubble and make repeated trips back to the surface — a fly or lure that dives nose-first on the drop imitates exactly this

Takes are seldom subtle — trout ravage boatmen as they hit the water and during their subsurface runs.

Tailor-made for hardware: a small 1/16 oz silver-bellied spoon or jig cast AT the rings of a splashdown sinks headfirst exactly like the natural — twitch-pause it back through the top few feet. On flight days fan-cast the shallow weed margins.

The event happens over near-shore shallows, weed beds and shoal margins on calm sunny fall afternoons

Grasshoppers (east-side summer)Active window

Typical here: Jun 15 – Sep 30

adultall day in high summer, best when afternoon wind knocks bugs onto the water

Pulls fish to the windward grassy banks and edges for months — fish the bank the wind blows ONTO.

The friendliest crossover of the summer: on lakes, drift the windward bank with a bubble-and-foam-hopper — the bubble's splash doesn't hurt a hopper presentation. On rivers, the same rig dead-drifted along the undercut grass banks, or small gold spinners under the banks between rises.

The event happens over grassy banks, undercut edges and windward shorelines

Next on this water

Damselfly migration · forageMay 15 – Jul 31 · in ~9 months

Recommendations come from depth structure and seasonal species behavior. Treat them as a starting point, not a guarantee. Contours here are interpolated from real agency depth surveys (state DNR / USACE). Never use for navigation. Always check local regulations.

Loading depth chart…

Recent catches at Medical Lake

Shared by DepthScout anglers. Exact spots stay private, always.

No shared catches here yet — be the first.Log a catch from the map above and share it to put Medical Lake on the board.

Fishing Medical Lake: what the data says

166-acre lake near Medical Lake. The lake tops out around 60 ft. The depth chart is built from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the humps, channels and drop-offs you see are measured, not guessed. Here's the year, species by species, as the scoring engine sees it.

Medical Lake maps at 166 acres behind 2.3 miles of shoreline. The basin is a simple one (shoreline index 1.3) — close to a bowl, so the structure on the chart matters more than the bank. Roughly 27% of the water is 15 ft or less, the band where the food chain lives. The basin spans about 1 mi end to end and 0.3 mi across at its widest. Spokane County claims this one. West Medical Lake sits 1 mi west — the closest neighbouring chart.

Brown Trout fishing at Medical Lake

Spring puts brown trout in skinny water — 3 to 25 ft is the zone. As the season builds they drop to 25 to 60 ft, wintering in 5 to 35 ft. Summer brown trout concentrate at Break off the point, a prime-rated drop-off around 48 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around after dark and early morning. A spoon at the thermocline or a deep stickbait (night) covers the summer program.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	3 to 25 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (18 ft)	Stickbait off planer boards (shallow), Small spoon along mud lines
Summer	25 to 60 ft	night & dawn	Break off the point (48 ft)	Spoon at the thermocline, Deep stickbait (night)
Fall	5 to 30 ft	dusk & dawn	Main-lake point (18 ft)	Jerkbait over gravel, Casting spoon
Winter	5 to 35 ft	dawn	Break off the point (48 ft)	Jigging spoon, Small stickbait (slow)

Rainbow Trout fishing at Medical Lake

Early season rainbow trout use the shallows, holding in 5 to 20 ft. Summer is an 8 to 30 ft game here, winter an 8 to 40 ft one. The chart's best answer is Main-lake point — point, 18 ft, prime for spring. Best bite is early morning and the evening. Tie on a dodger + spoon (deep troll) or a flutter spoon and you're in the game.

Season	Depth	Best window	Start at	Go-to baits
Spring	5 to 20 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (18 ft)	Inline spinner (silver), Small spoon
Summer	8 to 30 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (18 ft)	Dodger + spoon (deep troll), Flutter spoon
Fall	10 to 35 ft	dawn & dusk	Main-lake point (18 ft)	Casting spoon, Jerkbait over shoals
Winter	8 to 40 ft	dawn	Break off the point (48 ft)	Jigging spoon, Tube jig (white)

Notable structure

Count 6 structure marks on this chart. The deepest, Deep basin, sits near 60 ft.

Deep basin: deep basin, around 60 ft
Break off the point: drop-off, around 48 ft
Main-lake point: point, around 18 ft
Secondary point: point, around 9 ft
Shallow bay flat: weed flat, around 8 ft
Back-bay flat: weed flat, around 4 ft

Public access & boat ramps

Boat launch — ramp

Access data: OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) — community-mapped launches. Confirm conditions and fees locally before you launch.

Medical Lake stocking report

Date	Species	Count	Size
May 11	Rainbow trout	4,859	—
May 11	Rainbow trout	170	—
Mar 12	Rainbow trout	2,500	—
Mar 3	Brown Trout	2,500	—

Source: WDFW fish-stocking reports, retrieved 2026-08-18.

Medical Lake fishing regulations

Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Washington waters are set by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife — and special regulations can apply to Medical Lake specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.

Check the official Washington fishing regulations →

Common questions

How deep is Medical Lake?

Medical Lake is about 60 ft (18 m) deep at its deepest point. The depth chart here comes from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the contours reflect measured depths.

What fish are in Medical Lake?

Anglers target brown trout, rainbow trout on Medical Lake.

Where is the best fishing spot on Medical Lake?

Break off the point is the top-rated area: a drop-off in about 48 ft of water that rates prime for brown trout in summer. Open the map above to see every rated spot for each species and season.

When is the best time to fish Medical Lake?

For brown trout, the summer bite is best in after dark and early morning. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.

Is Medical Lake stocked with fish?

Yes — per WDFW fish-stocking reports records, Medical Lake was most recently stocked May 11 with 4,859 rainbow trout. The full stocking history is listed above.

What are the fishing regulations for Medical Lake?

Fishing on Medical Lake is regulated by the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Check the official Washington regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.

Nearby waters

West Medical Lake 1 mi · Clear Lake 3 mi · Badger Lake 15 mi · Williams Lake 17 mi · Spokane River 24 mi · Sprague Lake 27 mi · Liberty Lake 29 mi · Newman Lake 31 mi · Loon Lake 33 mi · Eloika Lake 35 mi · Fan Lake 36 mi · Deer Lake 38 mi

See how Medical Lake stacks up: best rainbow trout lakes in Washington · best brown trout lakes in Washington

More water nearby: Spokane County fishing maps (9 charts). Browse all Washington fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.