Sipiwesk Lake in Kelsey: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  This water sits in Kelsey, Manitoba. The surface lies 185 metres up. Around 514.00 sq km of open water: conditions change from one end to the other. Long inlets mean the far ends can be calm while the main body is rough. Few waters listed in Kelsey are bigger. Cross Lake 19A is the closest town at 50 km. The big place round here is Winnipeg, 579 km distant. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Sipiwesk Lake

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Kelsey records list white sucker, johnny darter, northern pike and walleye among the fish reported. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. On Sipiwesk Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 17°C and January at -24°C. Winter runs most of the calendar, and everything worth doing happens in the gap. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around mid May. On the long-run averages the water opens up around mid May and starts locking again about early November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. At Sipiwesk Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Public mapping records no formal access here, so plan for a walk and soft ground. A wire trace and a big bright lure handle the pike; deep water asks for a heavier spoon. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. If the gate is shut, Skinner Lake at 18 km is the nearest alternative. Nothing here settles the position at Sipiwesk Lake for certain.