Cache Lake Fishing Guide, Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  Cache Lake is listed under Thunder Bay District, Ontario. It lies 289 metres above sea level. Roughly 1.29 sq km of surface: treat each bay as a water in its own right. The edge covers about 12 km, enough to hold several distinct areas. Manitouwadge is the closest town at 51 km. Thunder Bay sits 242 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Cache Lake

  Our records carry no depth, so judge it from the bank. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Fish documented in Thunder Bay District include cisco, blackfin cisco and rainbow smelt. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Fish Cache Lake to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 16°C in July and bottom out at -15°C in January. The year here is short and sharp: a long lid, then a burst of open water. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about late April. The water is typically free of ice between late April and mid November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Time your trip to Cache Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. 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. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Failing this one, try Cigar Lake, 2.7 km away. Where Cache Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.