Melvin Lake Fishing Guide, Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  Melvin Lake belongs to Thunder Bay District, Ontario. This is pine and birch country. Surface area runs to roughly 2.44 sq km, so plan for one area rather than the whole. The outline measures near 29 km, so a boat opens up water the bank never reaches. It ranks high for size among our Thunder Bay District listings. The closest town, Grand Marais, is 53 km away. After that come Neebing at 92 km and Ely at 95 km. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Melvin Lake

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. County-wide records name cisco, blackfin cisco, rainbow smelt, bloater and shortjaw cisco. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. At Melvin Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about -15°C in January to roughly 18°C in July. Winter closes the water for a while, and the reopening is worth catching. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around late April. The open-water window runs from around late April to about late November in an average year. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. Melvin Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Nothing formal is recorded here: no ramp, no car park, no marked path. A light spinning outfit with a small box of lures and some bait covers most of what swims here. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. If the gate is shut, Beulah Lake at 2.7 km is the nearest alternative. The position on Melvin Lake is worth confirming on the day.