Watson Lake

Watson Lake is stocked little and often. In 2025 WDFW logged 9 release dates spread over 5 months, about 1,312 fish per release date, the first on Feb 26, 2025 and the last on Jun 6, 2025.

WDFW data through Oct 30, 2026. Page updated November 5, 2026.

Open on a map

Map point 46.2850, -117.6548, as WDFW gives it for this water.

Watson Lake in numbers

catchable trout in 2025: 11,812
so far in 2026, through Oct 30: 6,320
2025 against the 2015–2025 average of 11,898 a year: −1%

2026 is running behind 2025: 6,320 fish through Oct 30, against 11,812 by the same date a year earlier. The latest batch, 500 rainbow trout, went in on Jun 9, 2026, 149 days before this page was built.

WDFW lists Watson Lake as 4.4 acres in Columbia County, at 2,382 ft. At 2,382 ft it is the 4th-highest of the 36 waters here with a listed elevation. Per acre, Watson Lake got about 2,685 catchable trout in 2025, which puts it 8th of the 37 waters on this site with a WDFW acreage.

Release log

Every release since January 2025

13 species-date records, newest first. Fish per lb is the figure WDFW reports for each batch.

Latest batch, Jun 9, 2026500rainbow trout, 6 oz each

Summer 2026

Jun 9Rainbow trout5002.5 per lb · avg 6 oz

Spring 2026

May 19Rainbow trout2,6002.4 per lb · avg 7 oz

Winter 2026

Feb 25Rainbow trout1000.8 per lb · avg 1.2 lb

Feb 24Rainbow trout3,1202.6 per lb · avg 6 oz

Summer 2025

Jun 6Rainbow trout2,0002.5 per lb · avg 6 oz

Spring 2025

May 22Rainbow trout9752.5 per lb · avg 6 oz

May 20Rainbow trout600.7 per lb · avg 1.4 lb

May 16Rainbow trout7252.5 per lb · avg 6 oz

Apr 30Rainbow trout500.7 per lb · avg 1.4 lb

Apr 18Rainbow trout1,6252.5 per lb · avg 6 oz

Apr 4Rainbow trout2,6502.3 per lb · avg 7 oz

Mar 17Rainbow trout1,6252.5 per lb · avg 6 oz

Winter 2025

Feb 26Rainbow trout2,1022.3 per lb · avg 7 oz

2015 – 2026

Fish released each year

2025 is yellow. 2026 is outlined because the year is not over: the data runs to Oct 30, 2026. A dash means WDFW has no record for that year. The busiest full year was 2017, with 13 release dates and 18,505 fish; the 2015–2025 average is 9.0 release dates a year.

2015: 11,561 catchable fish on 8 release dates
2016: 12,104 catchable fish on 9 release dates
19k2017: 18,505 catchable fish on 13 release dates
2018: 15,630 catchable fish on 10 release dates
2019: 7,534 catchable fish on 9 release dates
2020: no record
2021: 3,146 catchable fish on 3 release dates
2022: 13,406 catchable fish on 11 release dates
2023: 12,982 catchable fish on 10 release dates
2024: 12,300 catchable fish on 8 release dates
12k2025: 11,812 catchable fish on 9 release dates
6k2026 (to Oct 30): 6,320 catchable fish on 4 release dates

How big are these fish?

4 to 8 oz: 17,922 fish, 99%
1 to 2 lb: 210 fish, 1%

Weight is 1 ÷ fish per lb, as WDFW reports it for each batch. It is a batch average, not a guarantee for any one fish. Counts cover every release since January 2025.

Notes from the records

The biggest single batch since January 2025 was 3,120 rainbow trout on Feb 24, 2026. The heaviest fish were 60 rainbow trout on May 20, 2025, at 0.7 per lb, about 1.4 lb each.

Timing shifts from year to year. Treat this as a pattern, not a promise.