Fishing at Lake of the Woods, Sudbury, Ontario

• Overview

  Sudbury, Ontario, is where Lake of the Woods sits. It lies 213 metres above sea level. It covers about 10 hectares, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. The bank runs about 2.0 km all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Sudbury. Lively at 37 km is the nearest place to stop. Greater Sudbury is the closest city, 46 km away. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Lake of the Woods

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Public occurrence data for Sudbury names smallmouth bass, northern pike, yellow perch, Iowa darter and walleye. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. The shape of Lake of the Woods decides where the fish sit.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about -11°C in January to roughly 19°C in July. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Break-up comes around late April, and the run that follows is short and strong. Break-up sits around late April on average, with the water closing again about early December. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. Anyone fishing Lake of the Woods regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Expect a 910 m walk in from where the car goes. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. Turbid Lake at 1.9 km is the sensible second choice. Nothing here settles the position at Lake of the Woods for certain.