Franks Lake, Ontario: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Franks Lake is a Renfrew County water, in Ontario. The ground around here is rolling bush. At roughly 6 hectares, the whole thing is within casting reach of a single walk. Eganville sits 40 km from here and is the nearest stop. Bancroft is 46 km and Pembroke 56 km. Also worth knowing: Wadsworth Lake within 1.1 km, Gun Lake at about 1.2 km, Lost Lake within 2 km, Halfway Lake at about 2.2 km and Spruce Lake within 2.3 km. This one sits near enough to a boundary to be worth checking.

• Where to Fish on Franks Lake

  Our records hold no depth for this water. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Across Renfrew County, recorded fish include smallmouth bass, pumpkinseed, yellow perch, rock bass and brook trout. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Franks Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 18°C and January about -13°C. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around late April. The season between ice runs from about late April to early December. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Anyone fishing Franks Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Mapping shows a jetty some 1.3 km off. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Wadsworth Lake, 1.1 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Confirm before you fish Franks Lake.