Clam Lake near Markstay-Warren: Fishing Spots, Seasons and Access

• Overview

  Clam Lake is one of the Sudbury listings for Ontario. The bank is 218 metres above sea level. Roughly 23 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. At about 11 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. By elevation it sits in the lower part of our Ontario listings. Markstay-Warren lies 27 km from the water. After that come Greater Sudbury at 32 km and Lively at 38 km. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Clam Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Sudbury records list smallmouth bass, northern pike, yellow perch and Iowa darter among the fish reported. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. The near bank of Clam Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 19°C and January near -12°C. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. Look for the thaw near late April; the fishing lifts straight after. Break-up near late April, freeze-up near early December: that is the shape of an average year. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. Plan any trip to Clam Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. 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. Parking space is the usual limit rather than the bank itself. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Failing this one, try Cranberry Lake, 1.5 km away. Where Clam Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.