Fishing at Lily Lake, Hants, Nova Scotia

• Overview

  Lily Lake falls in Hants, part of Nova Scotia. The bank gives way to pine and birch. It measures about 35 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. The edge runs 3.8 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. Size puts it in the front rank of our Hants list. Mount Uniacke is the closest town at 5.3 km. The nearest city of size is Dartmouth, 37 km away. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Lily Lake

  Depth here is unknown, so count the lead down before committing. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Open biodiversity records for Hants list American eel, Atlantic salmon, striped bass and smallmouth bass. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. At Lily Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 18°C on average, January about -6°C. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near mid April. Break-up near mid April, freeze-up near mid December: that is the shape of an average year. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. The season on Lily Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. For a change of water, Clarke Lake is 1.7 km distant. Treat access at Lily Lake as something to verify.