Lily Lake Fishing in Hants, Nova Scotia

• Overview

  Lily Lake sits within Hants in Nova Scotia. Country round the bank runs to lake country bush. It measures about 43 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. The full circuit measures close to 2.8 km on foot. Size puts it in the front rank of our Hants list. Hantsport sits 7.4 km from here and is the nearest stop. The nearest city of size is Dartmouth, 61 km away. This one sits near enough to a boundary to be worth checking.

• Where to Fish on Lily Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Species logged across Hants include American eel, Atlantic salmon, striped bass, smallmouth bass and rainbow smelt. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Lily Lake fishes better once you know its edges.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 19°C on average, January about -6°C. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about mid April. On the long-run averages the water opens up around mid April and starts locking again about mid December. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. Plan any trip to Lily Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Formal access is not mapped, so the last stretch is likely on foot. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. If the gate is shut, Woodward Sanford Lake at 6.5 km is the nearest alternative. What applies at Lily Lake may have changed since it was mapped.