Hydes Lake Fishing near Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia

• Overview

  Hydes Lake is listed under Guysborough County, Nova Scotia. This is lake country bush ground. At 3 hectares it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. Our Guysborough County list holds plenty of bigger water. Nearest town is Port Hawkesbury, 34 km off. Beyond it, Louisdale at 45 km and Princeville at 51 km. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Hydes Lake

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Survey and observation records for Guysborough County include alewife, American eel and brook trout. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Hydes Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -6°C to 18°C. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Break-up comes around late April, and the run that follows is short and strong. In an average year the thaw lands around late April and the freeze near late December. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. That is the shape of the year on Hydes Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Light line and small metal for the trout; a fly rod earns its place on calm evenings. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Night access is frequently treated as a separate matter. Should this one be busy, Henlines Lake is 1.8 km off. Check the position at Hydes Lake before loading the car.