Clem Lake Fishing Guide, Nipissing District, Ontario

• Overview

  Clem Lake stands in Nipissing District, Ontario. The bank gives way to mixed forest. Roughly 46 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. Shoreline comes to about 4.5 km, small enough to learn in a day. 44 km away sits Markstay-Warren, the nearest town. Then West Nipissing, 51 km, and Sturgeon Falls, 51 km. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Clem Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. County-wide records name smallmouth bass, cisco and yellow perch. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. At Clem Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 18°C and January at -15°C. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. Break-up comes around late April, and the run that follows is short and strong. Expect the water usable from around late April until roughly late November. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. It sets the rhythm of the year at Clem Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. If the gate is shut, Little Cross Lake at 1.7 km is the nearest alternative. None of that is settled for Clem Lake in what we hold.