Whatshan Lake is a stillwater in the West Kootenay, just west of the north end of Lower Arrow Lake, draining out through Whatshan River. It carried a heavy rainbow trout and Kokanee stocking program for four decades, but nothing has been planted here since 1964.
The water
Whatshan Lake sits in the Lower Arrow Lake drainage, feeding Whatshan River on its way to Lower Arrow Lake and, beyond that, the Columbia River. Snowshoe Lake lies in the hills a short distance to the west. Exact surface area and depth have not been confirmed for this water; treat it as unconfirmed until a survey or field check closes that gap.
Stocking
For an angler judging whether a lake like this still holds fish, the release record is the best evidence on file. Whatshan Lake was stocked 38 times between 1922 and 1964, roughly 1.71 million fish in total, almost all rainbow trout eyed eggs, fry and fingerlings drawn from a rotating cast of hatchery strains: Gerrard Creek, Cottonwood, Pinantan, Pennask, Beaver, Loon Creek and, in the final recorded plant, Fraser Valley. Kokanee eyed eggs went in alongside the rainbow trout for four consecutive years, 1942 through 1945, at 100,000 a year from Meadow Creek and Pennask stock. The last recorded release, on 1964-01-01, put 40,000 Fraser Valley-strain rainbow trout fingerlings into the lake, and nothing has been stocked since.
Whatshan Lake — 1,714,510 fish stocked, 1922–1964
Rainbow Trout, Kokanee. Source: Province of BC — FIDQ / FISS Fish Releases via the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC.
| Year | Rainbow Trout | Kokanee |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | 40,000 | · |
| 1963 | 8,000 | · |
| 1962 | 22,043 | · |
| 1960 | 16,165 | · |
| 1959 | 11,500 | · |
| 1956 | 25,000 | · |
| 1954 | 2,000 | · |
| 1953 | 80,000 | · |
| 1952 | 80,000 | · |
| 1951 | 88,980 | · |
| 1950 | 60,000 | · |
| 1949 | 80,000 | · |
| 1948 | 23,750 | · |
| 1947 | 50,000 | · |
| 1946 | 58,272 | · |
| 1945 | 50,000 | 100,000 |
| 1944 | 40,000 | 100,000 |
| 1943 | 48,800 | 100,000 |
| 1942 | 50,000 | 100,000 |
| 1941 | 50,000 | · |
| 1940 | 50,000 | · |
| 1939 | 50,000 | · |
| 1938 | 35,000 | · |
| 1937 | 30,000 | · |
| 1936 | 30,000 | · |
| 1935 | 20,000 | · |
| 1934 | 30,000 | · |
| 1932 | 20,000 | · |
| 1929 | 40,000 | · |
| 1928 | 40,000 | · |
| 1927 | 40,000 | · |
| 1926 | 20,000 | · |
| 1922 | 25,000 | · |
That six-decade gap since the last plant means Whatshan Lake cannot be treated as an active put-grow fishery today. If rainbow trout or kokanee persist, they are either a naturally sustaining population, drawing on the same Gerrard-strain genetics found downstream in Lower Arrow Lake and Kootenay Lake, or a low-density holdover from the historical plants; confirm the current state locally before counting on this water.
The fishing
With no confirmed current population and no dedicated fishing report on file for Whatshan Lake, on-the-water advice here has to stay general. If rainbow trout or Kokanee are present, this is a West Kootenay stillwater and the region's standard small-lake approach is the reasonable starting point: chironomid fished under an indicator over the shoals in spring and early summer, moving to leech and attractor patterns worked along any drop-off as the water warms. Small-lake stillwater tactics generally apply. Confirm forage, structure and technique locally before relying on this as a plan for the day.
Before you fish
Access and the rules
No boat launch, trail or parking information is documented for Whatshan Lake. It sits in the Lower Arrow Lake drainage of the West Kootenay, west of the lake's north end, but the road in, any private-land crossings and current closures are not confirmed here. Check locally before planning a trip.
