The Field Journal
Rivers & Lakes · Stocked Stillwater

Donut Lake

A stocked stillwater in the Slocan River watershed, NE of junction of Slocan and Little Slocan Rivers, W of Nelson, ~1 ha surface area, carrying Brook Trout and topped up by the provincial stocking program.

Donut Lake is a stocked stillwater in the Slocan River watershed, NE of junction of Slocan and Little Slocan Rivers, W of Nelson. ~1 ha surface area.

The water

Donut Lake lies NE of junction of Slocan and Little Slocan Rivers, W of Nelson; in the Slocan River watershed. It covers ~1 ha surface area.

Stocking

For an angler judging whether the fishing is worth the drive, the stocking record is the fishing report. Donut Lake is a put-and-take angling fishery, stocked with catchable game fish: 9 recorded releases totalling 13,000 fish (Brook Trout), last stocked 1995-05-23.

Stocking record

Donut Lake — 13,000 fish stocked, 1969–1995

Brook Trout. Source: Province of BC — FIDQ / FISS Fish Releases via the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC.

YearBrook Trout
19951,000
19941,000
19931,000
19921,000
19911,000
19901,000
19891,000
19871,000
19695,000

Stocking appears to have wound down after 1995. Confirm whether it is still topped up or now fishes as a residual, wild population. The chart below shows the full release history.

The fishing

Donut Lake fishes as a put-grow stillwater: work chironomids under an indicator over the shoals in spring, then leech and attractor retrieves along the drop-offs as the shallows warm. The stocking record below is the truest read on the size and cohort of fish you will find.

waves
Stocked Stillwater
Slocan River watershed
straighten
1 ha
surface area
egg
Stocked
put-and-take

Conditions

  • Water-health signal: poor (health index 8), 1 species over 11 observations.

Access & the rules

Confirm the launch, parking and any motor/float or seasonal restrictions for Donut Lake locally before you commit a day; the map shows where the lake sits in its drainage.

gavel

Before you fish

Confirm the current BC freshwater fishing regulations (Region 4 – Kootenay) before you go. Official synopsis: gov.bc.ca fishing regulations.