Fishing at Crawford Lake, Yellowhead, Manitoba

• Overview

  Crawford Lake is a Yellowhead water, in Manitoba. The setting is pine and birch on every side. It measures about 60 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Around 4.2 km of margin, front to back. Head to Minnedosa, 42 km away, for anything you forgot. Rivers is 54 km away, with Neepawa at 65 km. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Crawford Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Public occurrence data for Yellowhead names northern pike, yellow perch, walleye, Iowa darter and johnny darter. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. On Crawford Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages here run 18°C at the top of summer and -19°C at the bottom of winter. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around late April. On average, late April opens the water and mid November closes it again. The first weeks of open water and the last are the ones to plan for. That is the shape of the year on Crawford Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Wolf Lake sits 3.2 km off and takes the overflow. Treat Crawford Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.