Lancaster Lake Fishing Guide, Ethelbert, Manitoba

• Overview

  Set in Ethelbert, Lancaster Lake is a Manitoba water. Country round the bank runs to northern bush. It runs to roughly 31 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The edge runs 2.6 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. By elevation it is in the upper part of our Manitoba listings. Roblin lies 50 km from the water. The big place round here is Regina, 289 km distant. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Lancaster Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Open biodiversity records for Ethelbert list Iowa darter, yellow perch, northern pike, white sucker and rainbow trout. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. Work Lancaster Lake in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 16°C, the coldest about -19°C. Little of the calendar is open water, so timing counts for everything. Winter locks it down, and early May brings it back. The open-water window runs from around early May to about early November in an average year. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. That is the shape of the year on Lancaster Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. East Blue Lake sits 2.8 km off and takes the overflow. Rules at Lancaster Lake are worth checking on the day.