Corylus Lake in Thunder Bay District: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Corylus Lake is a Thunder Bay District water, Ontario side. The water sits 346 metres up. Around 29 hectares of surface means several distinct areas to work. Roughly 2.7 km of bank means you can walk to a fresh area when one goes quiet. The nearest place of any size is Terrace Bay, 54 km away. The nearest city of size is Thunder Bay, 205 km away. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Corylus Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Fish documented in Thunder Bay District include cisco, blackfin cisco, rainbow smelt and bloater. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Work Corylus Lake in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -18°C to 16°C. Water stays cold even at the height of the year. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around early May. The open-water window runs from around early May to about mid November in an average year. The middle of summer slows a little, with dawn and dusk carrying it. Time your trip to Corylus 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. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. One rod, a handful of hooks and floats, and a few small lures are enough for this water. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Failing this one, try Caragana Lake, 2 km away. Where Corylus Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.