Montours Lake Fishing Guide, South Slave Region, Northwest Territories

• Overview

  Look for Montours Lake in the South Slave Region part of Northwest Territories. The surroundings are dry open country. This is big water, about 16.53 sq km, and in a wind it behaves like a small sea. The outline measures near 57 km, so a boat opens up water the bank never reaches. Start from Yellowknife, 313 km down the road. Beyond it, Behchokǫ̀ at 369 km and Fort Smith at 465 km. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Montours Lake

  Nothing in our records gives a depth for this one. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Across South Slave Region, recorded fish include Arctic grayling, lake trout and Arctic charr. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Read Montours Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 14°C; by January the average is down near -29°C. The season is measured in weeks rather than months. Ice is part of the season here, ending near early June. Break-up near early June, freeze-up near mid October: that is the shape of an average year. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. On Montours Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Public data shows nothing built here, so treat the whole approach as informal. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. The nearest alternative is Outram Lakes, 16 km out. Where Montours Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.