January 27, 2026
By Ross Purnell
This series originally appeared in the February 2008 issue of Fly Fisherman.
Unlike many top brook trout destinations, Awesome Lake is a fly-fishing-only water with a strict catch-and-release policy on all trout over 3 pounds. The hardware crowd probably wouldn't be interested in Awesome Lake anyway-there are no pike, lake trout, whitefish, walleye, or sea-run Arctic char which accompany brook trout on many other rivers in northern Manitoba, Quebec, and Labrador. Awesome Lake forms the head of the English River, and an insurmountable waterfall 30 miles downstream blocks the passage of any other species. How brook trout managed to evolve here as the glaciers retreated–and other species did not–is a mystery that will probably never be answered.
Unlike most of Labrador's other well-known brook trout waters, Awesome Lake is not shallow and tan-colored with a silt bottom, but a sparkling blue, clear lake you might expect to see on a bottled water label. You can fish along the shoreline–which drops off rather quickly–but most of the best fishing is near the inlet and outlet.
Small mayflies , caddis , and midges hatch over the shallow area surrounding the inlet stream, and surface-feeding trout cruise there, picking off random insects with audible gushes and slurps. The problem is predicting the pattern. A cast at the rise-form typically lands where the trout just was–what you must determine is where the trout is going.
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The best dry-fly time is usually in the late afternoon and evening when the low light angle keeps trout hidden under the mirrored surface. Only the past rise-forms give an indication of where the trout are going. It's a little like figuring out what card is coming next in poker based on what is already showing on the table. It's far from a sure thing but it's the only shot you have.
The English River outlet is much larger than the inlet stream, and the fish there are the biggest in the lake. You can plainly see 4- to 6-pound trout on the bottom when the guide anchors the boat.
It seems like the biggest fish are actually attracted to the boats and wait patiently for anglers to catch small brookies on dry flies. You must quickly and efficiently land and release small fish, or the big brook trout will eat them from your line or shortly after release. This is a fly-fishing-only lake, so it is unethical to use the small fish as bait. The best way to catch the big fish is to use Deceiver-type patterns with brook trout colors, as there are no other baitfish.
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The English River outlet is much larger than the inlet stream, and the fish there are the biggest in the lake. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Turner) The English River just downstream of the lake provides the most exciting daytime fishing at Awesome Lake when mouse and lemming patterns draw crashing strikes from the biggest trout in the river. The average trout in the lake and first few miles of river are mostly 2 to 4 pounds, but the average trout size dwindles farther downstream because there are also many small fish.
Unlike many other trophy brook trout streams-where pike or other predators cull most of the small fish-the English River is full of brookies of all sizes, and a #16 Elk-hair Caddis draws strikes from 10-inch fish all afternoon. You can rack up 20- to 30-fish days if you are not worried about size. If you are working for only large fish, you have to use big flies like white #2-8 Slumpbusters, red-and-black Double Bunnys, and mouse patterns, to catch a half-dozen brook trout up to 5 pounds in a day of fishing. The best time to fish is in early July when the water is cold, the fish are unmolested, and the mayfly hatches are at their peak.
Click here to read the entire Trophy Brook Trout series.
Ross Purnell is the editor and publisher of Fly Fisherman.
