Baxter Lake Fishing Guide, Lanark County, Ontario

• Overview

  Baxter Lake lies in Lanark County, Ontario. The surface lies 151 metres up. The water covers some 15 hectares, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. Roughly 1.6 km of bank means you can walk to a fresh area when one goes quiet. It lies lower than most water we list in Ontario. For supplies, Carleton Place is 22 km out. After that come Perth at 23 km and Almonte at 24 km. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Baxter Lake

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Records held for Lanark County cover pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass and bluegill. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. The shape of Baxter Lake decides where the fish sit.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 20°C and January near -11°C. Hard water is a season in its own right here. Ice-out usually falls in mid April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Average temperatures cross freezing around mid April in spring and again near early December in autumn. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. That shapes the year on Baxter Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Part of this sits inside or beside Baird Community Forest, so read the notices. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Failing this one, try Gillies Lake, 2.7 km away. Where Baxter Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.