Fishing at Mickey Lake, Sudbury, Ontario

• Overview

  Mickey Lake is a Sudbury water, Ontario side. Beyond the shoreline you have lake country bush. It runs to roughly 70 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. At about 10 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. Capreol at 39 km is the nearest place to stop. The nearest city of size is Greater Sudbury, 59 km away. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Mickey Lake

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Sudbury records list smallmouth bass, northern pike and yellow perch among the fish reported. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. On Mickey Lake the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Seasonal averages run from -15°C in January up to 18°C in July. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near late April. Climate figures give an open season running late April to late November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. That is the shape of the year on Mickey Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what 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. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. West Adobe Lake at 2.1 km is the sensible second choice. For Mickey Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.