Fishing Gifford Lake in Kenora District, Ontario

• Overview

  This water sits in Kenora District, Ontario. The land about it is northern bush. Surface area runs to some 10.99 sq km, so a boat and a plan are both worth having. At about 48 km of edge, most people fish a single area and learn it well. It is among the larger waters listed here for Kenora District. Some 222 km away sits Greenstone, the nearest settlement. Geraldton is 226 km and Longlac 228 km. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Gifford Lake

  Depth here is unknown, so count the lead down before committing. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Public occurrence data for Kenora District names northern pike, longnose sucker and white sucker. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Gifford Lake repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 16°C in July and bottom out at -22°C in January. Cold dominates the year and the fishing works around it. Break-up comes around mid May, and the run that follows is short and strong. Break-up near mid May, freeze-up near early November: that is the shape of an average year. Fish feed hardest at the start and the close of the open season. Gifford Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. A wire trace and a big bright lure handle the pike; deep water asks for a heavier spoon. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Should this one be busy, Futile Lake is 3.6 km off. Check the position at Gifford Lake before loading the car.