Byers Lake fish species

[pike_palace]

What variety of fish are in this lake? I've heard it has a few Burbot in it but is there anything else? Would like to ice fish this lake come winter.

[Hunt&FishAK]

hey man ill ice fish it with ya....been wantin to try it out myself....its a really deep clear lake, has burbot, lakers, whitefish, grayling, and suckers i think but not sure...look on the fish and game stocked lakes page....its under wild lakes in the mat-su region.

[pike_palace]

If we ever get the itch to head up there I will shoot you a message. It's always fun to go fishing with new people.

[matjpow]

Byers Lake:
http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/State...ail/LakeID/335

I've been wanting to go out there too. It should be freezing up good here soon. There is a small Red run up there too so I assume the Rainbows are well fed.

[Hunt&FishAK]

silvers run up there too. i remember my dad takin me there once while we were moose hunting up thataway....thousands of silvers and reds...i dont remember it being a large lake, but there sure was alot of bear sign.

[matjpow]

Originally Posted by Hunt&FishAK

silvers run up there too. i remember my dad takin me there once while we were moose hunting up thataway....thousands of silvers and reds...i dont remember it being a large lake, but there sure was alot of bear sign.

I've heard the bear are pretty thick there. The brush is very thick too so it makes it hard to hunt and dangerous to walk around. Good time in the winter though. It's not a large lake, about a mile and a half long, 325 acres. It's very deep though, 177' at the deepest.

Does anyone have any experience with lake trout in early winter? How deep and what part of the lake? Do you just use herring, or some sort of jig?

[Hunt&FishAK]

my favorite technique for lakers so far, since im still learning. i like to use an airplane jig tipped with a little shiner or piece of herring or whitefish if i can find it. jigging krocodiles works pretty good too. ive heard that big white tube jigs work great... i wonder how big they get in there, and how big the burbot get.

[dirtofak]

I did not know that there were lakers in Byers or that is was that deep. I have never fished it and now nothing about it. Interesting things... deep lake, salmon run, low pressure, lots of food. Sounds like a great place to try for lakers. Reminds me of another lake that has some terrific laker fishing. Either the people that fish it are very quiet or there is virtually no pressure on the lake trout in it. No picture of huge fish, no rumors, no dedicated Byers lake fishermen. Things that make you want to say hmmmm........

[matjpow]

Originally Posted by dirtofak

I did not know that there were lakers in Byers or that is was that deep. I have never fished it and now nothing about it. Interesting things... deep lake, salmon run, low pressure, lots of food. Sounds like a great place to try for lakers. Reminds me of another lake that has some terrific laker fishing. Either the people that fish it are very quiet or there is virtually no pressure on the lake trout in it. No picture of huge fish, no rumors, no dedicated Byers lake fishermen. Things that make you want to say hmmmm........

I think people keep quiet about it. I have kept the idea to myself for a while but now the cat is out of the bag. I drive by there every week and have stopped in a few times to look. It is very tranquil. It is kind-of out of the way for a lot of people. I think it is at around mile 160. It's kind-of like Honolulu creek. I have caught Kings (not last year though, didn't see a single one) there but nobody really talks about it. There are suppose to be silvers come up it too but I have never seen or caught any.

On the other hand...people might not talk about it because there are no fish in it. Either way it is a nice quiet lake. Fish or no fish, it's better than sitting on the couch. We need to plan an expedition!!!

[mainer_in_ak]

I've spent a few days on Byers Lake a few winters back. I've also fished the creek. Was a good time, but I did put alot of effort into the lake for only mediocre results. Caught a few small lakers. I haven't gone back because I like pushing out to more remote lakes where I have better success with both numbers of fish, better bag limits, and the size of fish........it makes the gas spent more worth while. Byers is still a pretty place though......never any pressure when I was there.

[dirtofak]

The map shows it at mile 124 of the Parks Hwy. Kind of far for a day trip. I can drive a couple more miles to Lake Louise and stay in my own cabin. Based on what has been said here. I would believe that it is a nice lake with decent potential. While smaller, it has alot of the same characteristics as one of the remote lakes that produces quality fish.

Mike

[AKDoug]

I think some of the low pressure comes from the fact that it snows there a bunch and they don't plow the campground. You have to park at the pullout for the outhouses and hike down. Most years it's snowshoe mandatory and it's a bit of a hill dropping down to the lake. For snowmachine use you have to wait until the Park opens it for snowmachine use and make sure your sled has a current registration.

[SalmonMan]

I have fished there a few times through the ice. Plenty of lakers and burbot. Not much size to the fish. Any laker or burbot over 5 pounds would be pretty large.

[KMac]

Originally Posted by matjpow

I've heard the bear are pretty thick there. The brush is very thick too so it makes it hard to hunt and dangerous to walk around. Good time in the winter though. It's not a large lake, about a mile and a half long, 325 acres. It's very deep though, 177' at the deepest.

Does anyone have any experience with lake trout in early winter? How deep and what part of the lake? Do you just use herring, or some sort of jig?

All 5 species of salmon run up that creek. Bears like you wouldn't believe. Think of it as the mini-me of McNeil River! I know of a guy who flew over Byers and Troublesome one fall and counted 64 bears.

Lots of reds in the lake in summer, and there's a good sized inlet stream that comes in the NW corner. Don't know about ice-fishing.

[Hunt&FishAK]

im planning to hunt blackies there next spring.