Road Trip Lake recommendations?

Scudley Do Right

Scudley Do Right

Legend
I will be done with Chemo In May. My friend invited me to fish with him in Hamilton, MT mid June. My immune system might still be compromised so I'm gonna make the drive from Edmonds, WA this year. I was going to throw the Jon boat in the truck and take my time fishing a lake or two on the way. I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on lakes not too far out of the way I should check out in WA, ID or MT on the way.
 
Whoa….had no idea you were going thru that but glad to hear you’ll be finished 👍

My wife and I spent a night at this place when returning from a road trip.

spraguelakeresort.com

Sprague Lake Resort

The Campground and RV Park, located on Sprague Lake, just 36 miles west of Spokane, WA along I-90 and only 2 miles out of the town of Sprague, Washington
spraguelakeresort.com

It was a nice little place run by an old german lady….and not too far from 90.

I watched the guy from a neighboring trailer get some really nice troutski’s from the end of the boat launch.

So prolly a 5 hour drive from Edmonds

Careful of the wind tho…I’ve heard it can whip up crazy fast and make the water wicked nasty.

We’ve also stayed at

https://www.campgroundstregisrvpark.com/.

nice place. No lake but you could drive up the road and fish the river

Also stayed at the NF campgrounds in western MT like Sloway or Quartz Flat….both decent places for a road trip stop…but again no lake…it would be river fishing.

Have fun planning….love me a good road trip 👍

and bring earplugs should u stop at Sloway. The train on the far side of the river and it can be kinda loud at 1 or 2 in the morning 🤪
 
M_D said:
Whoa….had no idea you were going thru that but glad to hear you’ll be finished 👍

My wife and I spent a night at this place when returning from a road trip.

spraguelakeresort.com

Sprague Lake Resort

The Campground and RV Park, located on Sprague Lake, just 36 miles west of Spokane, WA along I-90 and only 2 miles out of the town of Sprague, Washington
spraguelakeresort.com

It was a nice little place run by an old german lady….and not too far from 90.

I watched the guy from a neighboring trailer get some really nice troutski’s from the end of the boat launch.

So prolly a 5 hour drive from Edmonds

Careful of the wind tho…I’ve heard it can whip up crazy fast and make the water wicked nasty.

We’ve also stayed at

https://www.campgroundstregisrvpark.com/.

nice place. No lake but you could drive up the road and fish the river

Also stayed at the NF campgrounds in western MT like Sloway or Quartz Flat….both decent places for a road trip stop…but again no lake…it would be river fishing.

Have fun planning….love me a good road trip 👍

and bring earplugs should u stop at Sloway. The train on the far side of the river and it can be kinda loud at 1 or 2 in the morning 🤪
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I also thought of Sprague (great minds..!). The lake's topography and food sources make it a worthwhile stop. Everyone used to go on about the freshwater shrimp in there and what it would support. Those trout yeah, and also big LMB and cats. Congrats and have fun when you go!
 
First off, having walked that walk myself I'm wishing you the best!
M_D said:
Whoa….had no idea you were going thru that but glad to hear you’ll be finished 👍

My wife and I spent a night at this place when returning from a road trip.

spraguelakeresort.com

Sprague Lake Resort

The Campground and RV Park, located on Sprague Lake, just 36 miles west of Spokane, WA along I-90 and only 2 miles out of the town of Sprague, Washington
spraguelakeresort.com

It was a nice little place run by an old german lady….and not too far from 90.

I watched the guy from a neighboring trailer get some really nice troutski’s from the end of the boat launch.

So prolly a 5 hour drive from Edmonds

Careful of the wind tho…I’ve heard it can whip up crazy fast and make the water wicked nasty.

We’ve also stayed at

https://www.campgroundstregisrvpark.com/.

nice place. No lake but you could drive up the road and fish the river

Also stayed at the NF campgrounds in western MT like Sloway or Quartz Flat….both decent places for a road trip stop…but again no lake…it would be river fishing.

Have fun planning….love me a good road trip 👍

and bring earplugs should u stop at Sloway. The train on the far side of the river and it can be kinda loud at 1 or 2 in the morning 🤪
Click to expand...
Out of curiosity, how long ago was it that you stayed at Sprague? I ask because every time I drive by the lake looks like a morgue with seldom a boat to be seen. The last time I launched there, which was a number of years ago, the water was like pea soup from end to end. I ran the length of the lake and then cut my losses and went to another nearby lake.
I used to fish it regularly but that was two rotenone treatments ago.
All that said, I'd sure love to hear some glowing reports after all of the money WDFW has dumped into it.
 
Old406Kid said:
First off, having walked that walk myself I'm wishing you the best!

Out of curiosity, how long ago was it that you stayed at Sprague? I ask because every time I drive by the lake looks like a morgue with seldom a boat to be seen. The last time I launched there, which was a number of years ago, the water was like pea soup from end to end. I ran the length of the lake and then cut my losses and went to another nearby lake.
I used to fish it regularly but that was two rotenone treatments ago.
All that said, I'd sure love to hear some glowing reports after all of the money WDFW has dumped into it.
Click to expand...
This past September 👍.
 
RCF said:
Georgetown lake near Phillipsburg Mt.
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The thing about Georgetown lake is, it’s much farther down the road than Hamilton is. You can get there or back from Hamilton over a rough road or backtrack to Missoula and then South to Hamilton.
 
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Wetswinger said:
The thing about Georgetown lake is, it’s much farther down the road than Hamilton is. You can get there or back from Hamilton over a rough road or backtrack to Missoula and then South to Hamilton.
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Agreed. About an hour and a half from Missoula but well worth it IMHO. To celebrate by catching trophy-sized brookies and bows (potentially) and some kokanees in a beautiful mountain top setting could be well worth it...
 
Browns was on my radar. It seems like a good option. I've wondered about Sprague before when I've driven by in the past. Amber seems interesting. I think I saw an episode of Ladin there before. Thanks for the kind words and recommendations.
 
Scudley Do Right said:
My dad always wanted to make it there. I was looking into it last year but thought I heard the fishing is down from years past.
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From my understanding it’s not like it used to be 10 years ago. But a group of us still make the 12 hour drive and fish it every year and have a great time.
It’s not overly technical. We mostly fish buggers, leeches and bait fish patterns.
It’s a fun lake to fish!
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