Kimball Lake

How big is Kimball Lake?

How deep is Kimball Lake?

What kind of fish can you catch in Kimball Lake?

What are the closest cities to Kimball Lake?

Are there boat launches on Kimball Lake?

Are there places to eat and drink near Kimball Lake?

Kimball Lake is a small designated stream trout lake, managed for stream trout since the 1930s. It has been reclaimed several times to remove undesirable fish species, with the last reclamation done in the fall of 2014 to remove yellow perch and rock bass. The lake is currently stocked annually with yearling rainbow trout in the spring, and is stocked with brown trout fingerlings in the fall of odd-numbered years. Management goals from the current (2019) lake management plan (LMP) are to maintain a rainbow trout population with a minimum trap net catch of 0.8 fish/set, with two year classes present, and maintain a brown trout population with a minimum trap net catch of 0.5 fish/set, with some fish over 20 inches present. In addition to the two stocked species, splake can sometimes be found in Kimball Lake, moving into the lake from their stocking site in Mink Lake.

This was the first standard survey completed on Kimball Lake since the 2014 reclamation. It was one of three standard surveys scheduled in the 2019 LMP to determine whether goals for rainbow trout and brown trout could be met under the current stocking regime, and to monitor the lake for the reintroduction of any undesireable fish species.

No undesirable fish species were taken in this survey, and it appeared that goals for the fishery probably could be met under the current stocking regime. Rainbow trout appeared to have still been abundant in the fall of 2020, despite being subjected to fairly high fishing pressure and significant harvest over the summer. The rainbow trout trap net catch was well above the goal set in the 2019 LMP, while the brown trout catch fell just below the goal for that species. The rainbow trout catch was high, compared to other stream trout lakes in this area, exceeding the normal range (0.40 - 2.24 fish/set) for fall trap net catches in stream trout lakes in this area. Although the brown trout catch did not meet the plan goal, it still fell within the normal range (0.20 - 1.00 fish/set) for this area. The splake catch also fell within the normal range for that species (0.60 - 3.24 fish/set), even though none had been stocked in Kimball Lake. No brown trout over 20 inches were taken; however, the first post-reclamation brown trout stocking was not done until 2017, and more time will likely be needed before those fish reach a size of 20 inches. Rainbow trout taken in this survey ranged in length from 10.8 to 16.4 inches. All but two were fish from the 2020 yearling stocking. Their mean length at capture (12.1 inches) indicated fairly good growth had occurred over the summer of 2020.

A creel survey done on Kimball Lake in January-March 2020 showed the lake supported fairly high winter fishing pressure. Winter anglers enjoyed good success, catching relatively high numbers of rainbow trout, as well as a few brown trout and splake.

Are there any state parks near Kimball Lake?