McKirdy Lake in Thunder Bay District: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  McKirdy Lake is set in Thunder Bay District, Ontario. It sits at 253 metres above sea level. It runs to roughly 26 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. The bank runs about 3.6 km all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. For supplies, Nipigon is 29 km out. Beyond it, Schreiber at 81 km and Greenstone at 88 km. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on McKirdy Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Thunder Bay District records list cisco, blackfin cisco and rainbow smelt among the fish reported. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. Fish McKirdy Lake to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Average temperature peaks around 16°C in July and bottoms out near -18°C in January. Everything is compressed into the middle of the year. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near early May. Averages place the thaw at early May and the freeze at mid November. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. The season on McKirdy Lake rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No car park, ramp or path is recorded within easy reach of the shore. A light spinning outfit with a small box of lures and some bait covers most of what swims here. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. For a change of water, Shamrock Lake is 1.1 km distant. For McKirdy Lake in particular, ask before you travel.