Yanik Lake Fishing in North Slave Region, Northwest Territories

• Overview

  Out in North Slave Region, Northwest Territories, sits Yanik Lake. The bank is 264 metres above sea level. This is sizeable water at about 7.85 sq km, and a boat opens up most of it. The margin runs to about 19 km in total. Behchokǫ̀ sits 312 km from here and is the nearest stop. It is 1345 km to Edmonton, the nearest city. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Yanik Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Reported across North Slave Region: Arctic grayling, lake trout and slimy sculpin. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Yanik Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -27°C and July at about 14°C, the water has a wide range to work through. Water stays cold even at the height of the year. Hard water holds through the cold months, breaking up near late May. Average temperatures cross freezing around late May in spring and again near mid October in autumn. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. On Yanik Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Mapping shows an empty shoreline: no ramp, no jetty, no marked entry. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Should this one be busy, Kway Cha Lake is 8.4 km off. Ask locally about Yanik Lake if anything is unclear.