There are several lakes in Banff National Park where yellowstone cutthroat reside. Taylor Lake is a mere 6.3 km hike from the road although the hike has 600 m of uphill! My buddy Pat and his girlfriend Ashley; joined Karen and I on an overnight hike up to Taylor Lake. The hike took us a bit more than two hours with our overnight gear. The trail is in excellent condition. After a short flat section at the start, the trail works its way up to the base of Mt. Ball. It is a bit of a grunt but the majestic Taylor Lake is a beautiful place to fly fish for yellowstone cutthroat trout!
After setting up camp and storing our food in the designated bear bins, we strung up our fly rods. Karen and I used my Bubba Gump Shrimp while Ashley and Pat used chernobyl dry flies. All of us were successful although the tiny shrimp pattern was a bit better! The yellowstones we caught were up to 15 inches in length and in excellent condition.
We saw a lot of cased caddis along the shore as well!
After our well deserved sleep, we woke up to a beautiful big blue sky morning even though it was well below zero C. We fired up our Jet Boil and had hot steaming coffee while we just sat and enjoyed the million dollar view right at our feet.
After breakfast Karen and I headed to the waterfalls at the end of the lake. That was a real challenge because of two sheer walls that you have to negotiate. It was well worth the effort. We caught some decent yellowstones where the falls spill into Taylor Lake. Meanwhile Pat and Ashley continued to cast chernobyls along rocky shore where there were drop offs. We all caught fish.
At lunch, I got a weather forecast from my InReach. Rain was moving in later in the afternoon. We all agreed to "bug out" and head to the vehicles. Just before we got back to the cars, the rain started. Pat and Ashley headed to Canmore while Karen and I headed to Red Deer in the rain.
I have never been to Taylor Lake. The hike is a decent challenge and once at Taylor Lake, the views are outstanding. The fishing was decent and the yellowstones were healthy mid sized trout! Always carry bear spray and carry lots of water and snacks!
I would definitely go again. It was an excellent adventure with Pat, Ashley and Karen.
The trail is in excellent condition!
Pat and Ashley
Can you see the food storage "bear proof" bins?
Pat hooking up!
Ashley's First Yellowstone Cutthroat
Morning coffee was spectacular!
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