Hargraft Lake in Algoma: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  This water sits in Algoma, Ontario. It lies 282 metres above sea level. Roughly 39 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. The bank runs about 3.1 km all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. Nearest town is Sault Ste. Marie, 38 km off. It is 231 km to Greater Sudbury, the nearest city. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Hargraft Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Fish documented in Algoma include walleye, northern pike, Iowa darter, yellow perch and white sucker. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Hargraft Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 17°C for July and -12°C for January. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. After late April the shallows warm and the fish move up. Averages suggest open water from about late April through to roughly late November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. On Hargraft Lake that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Public data shows nothing built here, so treat the whole approach as informal. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Should this one be busy, Devil's Lake is 3.6 km off. Signs at Hargraft Lake carry more weight than any list.