Lineal Lake Fishing in Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  Set in Thunder Bay District, Lineal Lake is an Ontario water. The land about it is spruce and muskeg. The water covers some 34 hectares, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. With 5.9 km or so of shoreline, boat anglers cover ground the bank cannot. The nearest place of any size is Manitouwadge, 27 km away. Thunder Bay is the closest city, 245 km away. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Lineal Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Across Thunder Bay District, recorded fish include cisco, blackfin cisco and rainbow smelt. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. On Lineal Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 16°C on average, January about -16°C. The ice season is long here and the open one short. Winter locks it down, and early May brings it back. Averages suggest open water from about early May through to roughly mid November. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. It sets the rhythm of the year at Lineal Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Keep the gear simple: light line, small hooks, split shot and a couple of proven lures. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Should this one be busy, Lineal Creek is 1.6 km off. Where Lineal Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.