Frances Lake in Sudbury: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Within Sudbury, Ontario, you have Frances Lake. Elevation runs to 204 metres. Roughly 24 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. With about 3.1 km of edge, you can try several depths in one session. Ground here is low by Ontario standards. Some 44 km away sits Lively, the nearest settlement. Further out sit Greater Sudbury (49 km) and Azilda (56 km). This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Frances Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Fish documented in Sudbury include smallmouth bass, northern pike and yellow perch. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Anyone new to Frances Lake should walk it once before setting up.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 19°C, while January sits near -11°C. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. The lid usually goes in late April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Break-up near late April, freeze-up near early December: that is the shape of an average year. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Frances Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing we hold confirms whether access is permitted. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. For a change of water, Beeftea Lake is 2.1 km distant. Treat Frances Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.