Rat Lake Fishing near Musquodoboit Harbour, Nova Scotia

• Overview

  Set in Halifax Regional Municipality, Rat Lake is a Nova Scotia water. It lies 80 metres above sea level. This is a pocket water of some 2 hectares, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. Our Halifax Regional Municipality list holds plenty of bigger water. You are 26 km from Musquodoboit Harbour. Dartmouth sits 62 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Rat Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Reported across Halifax Regional Municipality: brook trout, alewife, rainbow smelt, American eel and Atlantic salmon. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. On Rat Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect August near 18°C and January near -6°C on the long-run figures. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Once it clears, about mid April, the fishing comes on quickly. Average temperatures cross freezing around mid April in spring and again near mid December in autumn. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. Rat Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Should this one be busy, Second Crooked Lake is 0.4 km off. Check the position on Rat Lake before loading the car.