Devils Lake (near Lincoln City, Oregon) is not a destination fishery for fly folks and I doubt that it ever will be. Thanks to ODFW, several thousand pounds of hatchery raised triploid rainbows are planted each spring. Some of the locals and a few out of towners troll for them until they are run off by the power boats and water skiers during the summer months. It's a shallow, natural coastal lake with connectivity to the ocean via the 100 yard long D River. Each year, small runs of coho, steelhead and coastal cutthroat ascend D River and utilize the lake both to access its largest tributary, Rock Creek and for juvenile rearing.
I don't usually fish Devils Lake though it's been great for the grandkids and relatives when they come to visit. I do frequently use the lake to wash the ocean off my boats. Such was the case when I splashed my fly fishing scow after a session in a local estuary. The trout were dimpling everywhere so I packed my 4 weight and thought I would take a few casts. While fishing was fast and furious for catchables, one of the fish pulled a lot harder and jumped a lot higher. Much to my surprise, it was a 15" coastal cutthroat, one of three I happened to hook within about a 20 minute span. I must have stumbled upon a small pod of them, a first for me at D Lake and hopefully not the last.
I don't usually fish Devils Lake though it's been great for the grandkids and relatives when they come to visit. I do frequently use the lake to wash the ocean off my boats. Such was the case when I splashed my fly fishing scow after a session in a local estuary. The trout were dimpling everywhere so I packed my 4 weight and thought I would take a few casts. While fishing was fast and furious for catchables, one of the fish pulled a lot harder and jumped a lot higher. Much to my surprise, it was a 15" coastal cutthroat, one of three I happened to hook within about a 20 minute span. I must have stumbled upon a small pod of them, a first for me at D Lake and hopefully not the last.
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