Fishing Slingsby Lake in Manitoba, Manitoba

• Overview

  Manitoba holds Slingsby Lake, in Manitoba. Elevation runs to 360 metres. Surface area runs to roughly 3.06 sq km, so plan for one area rather than the whole. The perimeter runs near 16 km, so plan the walk before you start. Arviat lies 407 km from the water. Thompson follows at 417 km, then Gillam at 465 km. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Slingsby Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Read Slingsby Lake before you fish it and the day goes better. Bait sits where the wind pushes it, and so do the fish.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from -28°C in January up to 15°C in July. Open water is the exception rather than the rule here. Ice-out usually falls in late May, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Ice clears near late May and comes back about late October in a typical year. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. Plan any trip to Slingsby Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. The nearest alternative is Sigurdson Lake, 4 km out. Where Slingsby Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.