Dog Lake Fishing in Kenora District, Ontario

• Overview

  In Ontario, Dog Lake belongs to Kenora District. Country round the bank runs to pine and birch. It runs to roughly 33 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The bank runs about 3.9 km all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. Most waters listed here for Kenora District are larger. Kenora lies 44 km from the water. Winnipeg is the closest city, 225 km away. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Dog Lake

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Across Kenora District, recorded fish include northern pike, longnose sucker, white sucker, johnny darter and logperch. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Dog Lake gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about -18°C in January to roughly 19°C in July. Hard water is a season in its own right here. After late April the shallows warm and the fish move up. From about late April to around mid November, expect open water on the long-run figures. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. Plan around that when you fish Dog Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing on record says whether the bank is open or closed. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. The nearest alternative is Keys Lake, 2.2 km out. Where Dog Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.