Cranberry Lake Fishing in Sudbury, Ontario

• Overview

  You will find Cranberry Lake in Sudbury, Ontario. The surface lies 213 metres up. With some 22 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The edge runs 4.4 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. It lies lower than most water we list in Ontario. Markstay-Warren at 28 km is the nearest place to stop. Further out sit Greater Sudbury (31 km) and Lively (36 km). No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Cranberry Lake

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Public occurrence data for Sudbury names smallmouth bass, northern pike, yellow perch and Iowa darter. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. On Cranberry Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 19°C, with January the cold end at about -12°C. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. 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. Fish feed hardest at the start and the close of the open season. At Cranberry Lake the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No car park, ramp or path is recorded within easy reach of the shore. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. For a change of water, Crooked Lake is 1.5 km distant. Nothing here settles the position at Cranberry Lake for certain.