Raven Lake in Manitoba: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  The Manitoba end of Manitoba holds Raven Lake. Everything around it is northern bush. Surface area runs to roughly 1.27 sq km, so plan for one area rather than the whole. Some 8.2 km of bank gives room to move when the wind turns. Thompson is the closest place, 219 km off. It is 666 km to Saskatoon, the nearest city. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Raven Lake

  Depth here is unknown, so count the lead down before committing. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Treat Raven Lake as a water to read rather than to cover. Fish the shade line as the sun moves round.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between -26°C in January and 16°C in July. Open water arrives late and leaves early, which concentrates the fishing. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid May. Open water usually runs from mid May until about early November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Plan around that when you fish Raven Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No launch point is recorded nearby, so this is a bank water unless you carry a boat in. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Should this one be busy, Doug Lake is 2.2 km off. Ask locally about Raven Lake if anything is unclear.