Lower Arrow Lake is reservoir trout water with big-water consequences. It sits above Hugh Keenleyside Dam, feeds the lower Columbia River, and holds the familiar Kootenay formula: kokanee, large rainbows, bull trout and a productivity story shaped by dams.
The water itself
Think deep, long and exposed. Drawdown changes shorelines and access. The best fishing information is boat-first: trolling speeds, lure depth, kokanee location and seasonal trout movement. It is a lake to learn with electronics or a guide, not a shoreline you solve in an afternoon.
The fish
Gerrard-type rainbows and bull trout feed on kokanee. Whitefish and burbot round out the cold-water cast, with warmwater and invasive species part of the lower Columbia management context.
How it is fished
Spring can pull fish up with kokanee, making bucktail and polar-bear-style baitfish flies relevant near the surface. Fall is a heavy feeding window. Winter and summer often push the big fish deep, where downriggers, plugs, hoochies and spoons dominate. A fly angler here is usually trolling a fly or fishing a narrow creek-mouth opportunity.
Reservoir trout are forage trout
Guides and access
Mountain Valley Sport Fishing, WeSportFish partner guides, All In Fishing Adventures and Castlegar-area operators advertise Arrow Lake trips. Ask whether the day is fly, conventional trolling, or mixed tackle before booking.
Sources & further reading: BC Freshwater Fishing Regulations, Region 4 (2025-2027); FWCP Columbia Reservoirs & Large Lakes Action Plan; WeSportFish Arrow trolling notes; Arrow Lake Marina fishing notes; local FWA/FISS segment model.
Lower Arrow Lake — 914,212 fish stocked, 1924–2010
Rainbow Trout. Source: Province of BC — FIDQ / FISS Fish Releases via the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC.
| Year | Rainbow Trout |
|---|---|
| 2010 | 3,000 |
| 2009 | 3,000 |
| 2008 | 3,000 |
| 2007 | 3,000 |
| 2005 | 2,000 |
| 2002 | 950 |
| 2001 | 1,200 |
| 2000 | 800 |
| 1999 | 1,900 |
| 1998 | 1,950 |
| 1997 | 21,900 |
| 1996 | 21,950 |
| 1995 | 21,900 |
| 1994 | 27,318 |
| 1993 | 31,310 |
| 1992 | 27,784 |
| 1991 | 950 |
| 1990 | 800 |
| 1989 | 750 |
| 1988 | 800 |
| 1987 | 200 |
| 1951 | 5,000 |
| 1940 | 34,000 |
| 1939 | 50,000 |
| 1938 | 40,000 |
| 1937 | 90,000 |
| 1936 | 105,000 |
| 1935 | 46,750 |
| 1934 | 71,000 |
| 1933 | 21,000 |
| 1932 | 60,000 |
| 1929 | 100,000 |
| 1928 | 20,000 |
| 1927 | 20,000 |
| 1926 | 25,000 |
| 1924 | 50,000 |
