Fishing Bawk Lake in Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  In Ontario, Bawk Lake falls inside Thunder Bay District. Height above sea level is 300 metres. With some 89 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. At about 8.1 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. The nearest place of any size is Longlac, 32 km away. Thunder Bay is the closest city, 272 km away. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Bawk 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. Survey and observation records for Thunder Bay District include cisco, blackfin cisco, rainbow smelt, bloater and shortjaw cisco. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. Fish Bawk Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 16°C on average, January about -20°C. The freeze holds for the better part of the year. The lid usually goes in early May, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. On average, early May opens the water and mid November closes it again. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. It sets the rhythm of the year at Bawk Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. A light spinning outfit with a small box of lures and some bait covers most of what swims here. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Lower Bawk Lake sits 2.7 km off and takes the overflow. For Bawk Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.