Belle Lake Fishing in Nipissing District, Ontario

• Overview

  Belle Lake is one of the Nipissing District waters in Ontario. This is lake country bush country. At 7 hectares it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. On size it sits at the modest end of our Nipissing District list. The closest town, Mattawa, is 39 km away. For a city, Greater Sudbury is 186 km off. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Belle Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Records held for Nipissing District cover smallmouth bass, cisco and yellow perch. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. The shape of Belle Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about -13°C in January to roughly 18°C in July. Winter shuts things down for a spell, then spring reopens them fast. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about late April. Break-up sits around late April on average, with the water closing again about late November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. On Belle Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. No car park, ramp or path is recorded within easy reach of the shore. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Should this one be busy, Beau Lake is 0.6 km off. Signs at Belle Lake carry more weight than any list.