Dey's Pond near Collingwood: Fishing Spots, Seasons and Access

• Overview

  Set in Grey County, Ontario, this is Dey's Pond. Around the bank it is rolling bush. It runs to roughly 22 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The full circuit measures close to 2.0 km on foot. Compared with other Ontario water on our list, it sits high. Collingwood sits 15 km from here and is the nearest stop. Beyond it, The Blue Mountains at 17 km and Markdale at 24 km. You are close to a county edge here; who manages the access can change within a short drive.

• Where to Fish on Dey's Pond

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Records held for Grey County cover Chinook salmon, rainbow trout, brook trout and white sucker. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. At Dey's Pond light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -8°C and July at about 18°C, the water has a wide range to work through. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. Expect a solid lid for months and a thaw around mid April. Break-up sits around mid April on average, with the water closing again about early December. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. That is the shape of the year on Dey's Pond.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Davidson's Lake, 6.5 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing here settles the position at Dey's Pond for certain.