Fishing at Fly Lake, Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  Thunder Bay District in Ontario is where Fly Lake sits. The bank is 418 metres above sea level. With some 77 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The edge covers about 10 km, enough to hold several distinct areas. 82 km away sits Sioux Lookout, the nearest town. Thunder Bay is the closest city, 230 km away. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Fly Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Thunder Bay District records list cisco, blackfin cisco and rainbow smelt among the fish reported. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. On Fly Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 17°C in July and bottom out at -20°C in January. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Ice-out usually falls in early May, and the weeks after it fish hardest. On the long-run averages the water opens up around early May and starts locking again about mid November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. The season on Fly Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. One rod, a handful of hooks and floats, and a few small lures are enough for this water. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Failing this one, try Ringham Lake, 1.7 km away. Treat Fly Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.