Lake Trout can mostly be found in the northern part of the United States and Canada. They are prized as both a game fish as well as a food fish. Lake trout are the largest of the trout species and can grow in excess of 40 pounds in some cases. Lake trout are dependant on cold, deep, oxygen rich water, which is why they are mostly found in the Northern parts of North America. As a matter of fact, here's a trivia question for you: Did you know that nearly 25% of Canada's lake trout population is found in Ontario, and even though this is true, only 1% of Ontario's lakes contain Lake Trout?

Lake trout prefer cold water and are likely to be found deep during warm summer periods. Long narrow spoons and plugs are preferred lures for Lake trout fishing. Angling techniques are similar for lake trout in most waters. Down-riggers and lead core lines are useful for getting deep when surface waters are warm. During spring and fall when surface waters are cold, the lake trout may be near the surface. Slow trolling is the generally preferred method. However, some anglers catch lake trout by still fishing with smelt or other fish as bait on the bottom where temperatures are favorable for lake trout. Tipping spoons and jigs with a chunk of "cut bait" is a popular method for enticing these fish to bite.

Depending on the body of water, lake trout can grow to be quite large. In most water the average size of a lake trout id three to five pounds, with big fish being in the 20 pound range. However, in lakes such as Flathead Lake in Northwest Montana, 20 pound Lake trout are quite common and fish up to 35 pounds are pulled out of its waters. As a matter of fact, nettings conducted by the Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks Department have documented Lake Trout over 70 lbs!

Lake Trout fishing can be a lot of fun for the entire family or for the serious angler who wants to catch a trophy. Lake Trout aren't very difficult to catch, and can be caught at most times of the year. If you have the proper equipment, you can catch lake trout; it's as simple as that. One downfall that I've found with lake trout is that they tend not to fight as hard as you might think for their size. Of all the trout species, Lake Trout have to be the least aggressive fighters.