McMurty Lake in Algoma: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  The Algoma end of Ontario holds McMurty Lake. It lies 327 metres above sea level. About 1.60 sq km, so local knowledge or a boat saves a lot of walking. At about 8.7 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. Few waters listed in Algoma are bigger. Nearest place of any size is Wawa, 49 km away. The big place round here is Greater Sudbury, 309 km distant. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on McMurty Lake

  Our records hold no depth for this water. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Algoma records list walleye, northern pike, Iowa darter and yellow perch among the fish reported. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. McMurty Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 16°C on average, January about -16°C. Cold dominates the year and the fishing works around it. Winter locks it down, and early May brings it back. Open water usually runs from early May until about mid November. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. On McMurty Lake that shapes the whole year.

• 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. No made access is recorded, so a short walk in is the likely arrangement. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. Should this one be busy, Loon Lake is 2.3 km off. None of that is settled for McMurty Lake in what we hold.