Early season fly fishing on Box Lake

April can indeed be the cruelest month with unpredictably cool weather, that keeps ice lingering on local lakes, but if one searches hard enough there is always a lake that liberates itself from winters steely grasp earlier than others.
In the West Kootenay, the early go-to lake is Box Lake up by Nakusp, whose relatively low elevation, less than 600 metres, attracts a handful of eager if not desperate anglers.
You can count me as one of the more desperate types, intent on throwing string despite two days of relentless rain called for in the forecast. I loaded my float tube into the Subaru and navigated the twisting but scenic Hwy. 6 through the Slocan Valley.


Summit Lake

I took a detour up Wilson Lake Rd. at Rosebury to check out Beaver Lake, however it was undoubtedly still ensconced in ice and snow for at least another few weeks. I drove as far as I could before a deep, snow-covered road forced me back.
Stopping at Summit was no more inspiring as ice still clinged tenaciously to the shore, and with a freezing rain and blustery wind, was as inviting as a flat tire. I still wanted to try it yet as I was pumping up my tube, I soon  realized that the persisting hissing was a series of irreparable holes, which didn't sadden me too much considering how cold the water looked.

So into Nakusp to purchase a new tube, and then hit Box. I took the winding dirt road into the small lake and parked in one of the eight campsites.
I set up camp and with the rain coming down with more conviction than ever, decided to kick back, have a beer and wait it out. Well I finally got on the water the next day about noon.
Thanks to the only other camper, Doug from Vernon, for the visit that night, and who kindly showed me his cousin's, Okanagan fly tyer Les Robinson, incredibly artistically tied flies. He graciously gave me a pumpkin head nymph to try, unfortunately I didn't have any luck with the pumpkin head, however, a beadhead prince nymph was absolutely devastating for the Box Lake trout.
Check out one of Les' woven dragonfly nymphs at Phil Rowley's site.
http://www.flycraftangling.com/index.asp?p=145&szArticleButtonCommand=view&nArticleID=50

The rain slowed to a light deluge, and I seized the opportunity to pull on the waders, hook up the fly rod, and lauch the tube. After an unsuccessful effort with the pumpkin head, I figured something resembling the large mosquitoes and midges coming off might do the trick. I had tied a prince nymph pattern on a 3X long size 12 nymph hook, so it's profile was long and tapered, similar to a chironomid. My first cast was met with a jolt. I had barely made one strip before a nice rainbow hammered it.
Two successive casts resulted in a brookie and another rainbow and for the next two hours, I caught and released I don't know how many active trout measuring between nine and 16 inches.
It turned out to be a great trip despite the rain, wind, snow, hail, and technical difficulties.
Just goes to show
when the fishing is good, nothing else matters.
As the saying goes, the two best times to go fishing: when it's raining and when it's not.
Box Lake is about 10-km north of Nakusp and offers good fishing for brook trout and rainbow. The brookies tend to cruise in the shallow southeast end of the lake amidst the weed beds, whereas the rainbows generally favour the deeper water. Box Lake has a forest service campsite with a dock and boat launch. Chironomids in the spring will give you non-stop action, whereas trolling nymphs and leeches in summer and fall is the best tactic