Little Norris Lake in Algoma: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Little Norris Lake falls in Algoma, part of Ontario. The water sits 313 metres up. It measures about 22 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. A shoreline of some 1.9 km keeps the choices simple. Hornepayne at 50 km is the nearest place to stop. Hearst follows at 62 km, then Kapuskasing at 123 km. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Little Norris Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. County-wide records name walleye, northern pike, Iowa darter and yellow perch. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. Take Little Norris Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 16°C in July and bottoms out near -18°C in January. This far north the hard season runs and runs. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around early May. Break-up near early May, freeze-up near mid November: that is the shape of an average year. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. It holds true on Little Norris Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. 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. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Patrick Lake, 3.4 km away, makes the obvious fallback. What applies at Little Norris Lake may have changed since it was mapped.