Fishing Byng Creek in Algoma, Ontario

• Overview

  Byng Creek stands in Algoma, Ontario. Country round the bank runs to boreal forest. Hearst sits 85 km from here and is the nearest stop. The nearest city of size is Greater Sudbury, 327 km away. Neighbouring water: North Byng Lake some 10 km off, 10 km away is Byng Lake, Foster Lake some 11 km off, 14 km away is First Lake and Second Lake some 15 km off. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on Byng Creek

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Undercut banks hold fish that the middle of the river never will. Slack water behind an obstruction is worth more than open current. Species logged across Algoma include walleye, northern pike and Iowa darter. County data is a starting point rather than a guarantee. Anyone new to Byng Creek should walk it once before setting up.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 17°C and January reads -18°C. Long winters and short summers set the pattern. Ice takes the slower stretches in winter; by early May the whole run is open again. On the long-run averages the water opens up around early May and starts locking again about mid November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. The season on Byng Creek follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. No built facilities appear in mapping around this water. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. North Byng Lake, 10 km away, makes the obvious fallback. For Byng Creek, the notice at the access point is the final word.