Bartraw Lake in Lanark County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Bartraw Lake is set in Lanark County, Ontario. Lake country bush runs right down to the water. The water covers some 19 hectares, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. The edge runs 2.2 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. By elevation it sits in the lower part of our Ontario listings. Renfrew lies 32 km from the water. Arnprior is 40 km away, with Mississippi Mills at 40 km. The county line runs close by, so rules can change within a short drive.

• Where to Fish on Bartraw Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Lanark County records list pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass and bluegill among the fish reported. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. Fish Bartraw Lake to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 19°C and January about -11°C. Winter shuts things down for a spell, then spring reopens them fast. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from mid April. The season between ice runs from about mid April to early December. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. That is the shape of the year on Bartraw Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. No made access is recorded, so a short walk in is the likely arrangement. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Should this one be busy, Flower Round Lake is 2 km off. Signs at Bartraw Lake carry more weight than any list.