Donnelly Lake, Ontario: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Donnelly Lake belongs to District Municipality of Muskoka, Ontario. The surface lies 222 metres up. This is a pocket water of some 8 hectares, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. Most waters listed here for District Municipality of Muskoka are larger. Parry Sound sits 28 km from here and is the nearest stop. The big place round here is Barrie, 83 km distant. This one sits near enough to a boundary to be worth checking.

• Where to Fish on Donnelly Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Across District Municipality of Muskoka, recorded fish include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass and northern pike. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. At Donnelly Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -9°C to 19°C. The season turns properly here, and fish follow it closely. Break-up comes around mid April, and the run that follows is short and strong. Averages suggest open water from about mid April through to roughly early December. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. Donnelly Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. No made access appears within a short radius, so plan to park on a verge and walk. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Season dates differ by species, so read the table. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Should this one be busy, Payie Lake is 0.7 km off. Confirm before you fish Donnelly Lake.