Manitou Lake Fishing near Markstay-Warren, Ontario

• Overview

  Manitou Lake falls in Nipissing District, part of Ontario. The ground round it is mixed forest. It measures some 3.72 sq km, and wind has room to build across it. The shoreline runs about 22 km, so it pays to pick a stretch and stay with it. On our Nipissing District list it sits near the top for size. Some 46 km away sits Markstay-Warren, the nearest settlement. Greater Sudbury sits 68 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Manitou Lake

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. County-wide records name smallmouth bass, cisco, yellow perch and pumpkinseed. The county list is broader than any single water. Read Manitou Lake before you fish it and the day goes better.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 18°C for July and -15°C for January. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. The lid arrives early and lasts until roughly late April. Ice usually gives way near late April, and forms again about late November. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. Manitou Lake fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Access can change hands, so last year's answer may not hold. The nearest alternative is Hybrid Lake, 2.7 km out. Ask locally about Manitou Lake if anything is unclear.