Ida Lake Fishing Guide, Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  Ontario holds Ida Lake, in Thunder Bay District. Taiga runs right down to the water. At 1.49 sq km this is proper open water rather than a pond. Shoreline length is close to 13 km, and each section fishes a little differently. It ranks high for size among our Thunder Bay District listings. The nearest place of any size is Greenstone, 37 km away. Thunder Bay sits 187 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Ida Lake

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Survey and observation records for Thunder Bay District include cisco, blackfin cisco, rainbow smelt, bloater and shortjaw cisco. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. At Ida Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 16°C; the cold one sits at -20°C. Winter owns most of the year at this latitude. Ice is part of the season here, ending near early May. In an average year the thaw lands around early May and the freeze near mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. On Ida Lake the same rules apply, with local timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. One rod, a handful of hooks and floats, and a few small lures are enough for this water. Local rules can differ across the county line, so check where you stand. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. Should this one be busy, Bush Lake is 1 km off. Ask locally about Ida Lake if anything is unclear.