Third Lake Fishing near Port Hawkesbury, Nova Scotia

• Overview

  The Guysborough County end of Nova Scotia holds Third Lake. Tidal water begins 6.3 km from here. It measures about 13 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. The whole outline is near 1.8 km, and most of it is walkable. Port Hawkesbury is the closest town at 46 km. Further out sit Louisdale (54 km) and Antigonish (63 km). There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Third Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. County-wide records name alewife, American eel, brook trout, Atlantic salmon and blueback herring. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. Fish Third Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put August at about 18°C and February near -6°C. Hard water is a season in its own right here. After late April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Open water usually runs from late April until about late December. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Third Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• 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. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. If the gate is shut, Second Lake at 0.6 km is the nearest alternative. Nothing on Third Lake should be assumed from this page alone.