MacDonald's Lake Fishing Guide, Sudbury, Ontario

• Overview

  Look for MacDonald's Lake in the Sudbury part of Ontario. It sits in pine and birch. It measures about 13 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. The edge runs 2.6 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. It is a small entry by Sudbury standards. Markstay-Warren is the closest town at 24 km. Greater Sudbury sits 40 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on MacDonald's Lake

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Open biodiversity records for Sudbury list smallmouth bass, northern pike and yellow perch. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. On MacDonald's Lake the obvious spot is not always the productive one.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 18°C in July and bottoms out near -14°C in January. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near late April. Average temperatures cross freezing around late April in spring and again near late November in autumn. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Time your trip to MacDonald's Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Failing this one, try Fortune Lake, 1.7 km away. Nothing on MacDonald's Lake should be assumed from this page alone.