Hammond Lake in Parry Sound District: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Parry Sound District, Ontario, is where Hammond Lake sits. Height above sea level is 289 metres. Roughly 23 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. With about 2.6 km of edge, you can try several depths in one session. For supplies, South River is 26 km out. It is 122 km to Greater Sudbury, the nearest city. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Hammond Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Open biodiversity records for Parry Sound District list smallmouth bass, pumpkinseed, yellow perch, northern pike and rock bass. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. Fish Hammond Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 18°C in July and bottom out at -11°C in January. Cold winters and warm summers give a wide working range. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from late April. Expect the water usable from around late April until roughly early December. Late spring and early autumn carry the year between them. Time your trip to Hammond Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Should this one be busy, Stickland Lake is 0.8 km off. What applies at Hammond Lake may have changed since it was mapped.