Fishing at Bowley Lake, Lanark County, Ontario

• Overview

  Bowley Lake is a Lanark County water, in Ontario. The setting is pine and birch on every side. Surface area runs to about 2 hectares — small enough to read in one session. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Lanark County. For supplies, Almonte is 7.7 km out. For a city, Nepean is 45 km off. No boundary runs near, so the local rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Bowley Lake

  Depth went unrecorded, which puts the reading back on you. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Public occurrence data for Lanark County names pumpkinseed, rock bass, smallmouth bass and bluegill. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Bowley Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -11°C and July at about 20°C, the water has a wide range to work through. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around mid April. Ice clears near mid April and comes back about early December in a typical year. The first weeks of open water and the last are the ones to plan for. The season on Bowley Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. This sits inside Webber Woods, so read the reserve notices first. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Quig Lake at 5.3 km is the sensible second choice. For Bowley Lake in particular, ask before you travel.