Simply beautiful; a high mountain lake setting without the long uphill hike! Shore access is limited due to shrubs and downed trees along most of the shoreline. Float tube, canoe, or pontoon set-up would be the ticket here. Son and I carried a cartop boat in for our first try. He trolled a Dick Nite spoon behind my casual oaring while I cast about with a green wooly bugger fly. In three hours, we enjoyed regular strikes and hooked 6 fish from 4 to 15 inches, all cutthroat. Treat this one as a quality water, using single barbless hooks for easy catch-n-release. Don't forget the camera...

Directions: The lake is nestled in the trees about a quarter mile hike on a groomed trail. To get there, drive north on state road 57 out of Priest River, ID. The pavement ends just beyond Nordman, ID. Keep going. You'll cross into Washington, pass Huff Lake and then the Stagger Inn campground and the ancient cedar grove (well worth a walk about). Another mile and you'll pass the cut-off road to Metaline Falls. The lake trail is at the next wide spot in the road. A quarter mile further and you'll cross back into Idaho and need to back-track.

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