Hanover Lake, Ontario: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  The Sudbury end of Ontario holds Hanover Lake. Elevation runs to 364 metres. With some 75 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The edge covers about 9.7 km, enough to hold several distinct areas. Head to Timmins, 98 km away, for anything you forgot. It is 132 km to Greater Sudbury, the nearest city. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Hanover Lake

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Survey and observation records for Sudbury include smallmouth bass, northern pike, yellow perch, Iowa darter and walleye. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. The shape of Hanover Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 17°C, the coldest about -16°C. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Look for the thaw near late April; the fishing lifts straight after. Averages place the thaw at late April and the freeze at mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Hanover Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. No made access is recorded, so a short walk in is the likely arrangement. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Failing this one, try Shuller Lake, 2.9 km away. Where Hanover Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.