Laurie Lake Fishing Guide, North Slave Region, Northwest Territories

• Overview

  Set in North Slave Region, Laurie Lake is a Northwest Territories water. The bank gives way to dry open country. Around 45 hectares of surface means several distinct areas to work. At about 5.8 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. Most waters listed here for North Slave Region are larger. Supplies mean a trip to Behchokǫ̀, 192 km off. For a city, Edmonton is 1220 km off. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Laurie Lake

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Open biodiversity records for North Slave Region list Arctic grayling, lake trout and slimy sculpin. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. The near bank of Laurie Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 14°C, with January the cold end at about -30°C. The year here is short and sharp: a long lid, then a burst of open water. Once it clears, about late May, the fishing comes on quickly. Ice usually gives way near late May, and forms again about mid October. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. The season on Laurie Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Failing this one, try Sphinx Lake, 8.2 km away. Check the position on Laurie Lake before loading the car.