Charcoal Lake Fishing in District Municipality of Muskoka, Ontario

• Overview

  Charcoal Lake is one of the District Municipality of Muskoka waters in Ontario. Height above sea level is 359 metres. With some 17 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The bank runs about 2.5 km all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. The closest town, Huntsville, is 26 km distant. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Charcoal Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Across District Municipality of Muskoka, recorded fish include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, northern pike and yellow perch. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. Fish Charcoal Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -11°C and July at about 18°C, the water has a wide range to work through. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Hard water holds through the cold months, breaking up near late April. The lid tends to go about late April and return around early December. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. It holds true on Charcoal Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. You can launch from a ramp around 920 m away. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. The nearest alternative is Otter Lake, 1.8 km out. For Charcoal Lake in particular, ask before you travel.