Fishing at Milligan Lake, Cochrane District, Ontario

• Overview

  Milligan Lake lies in Cochrane District, Ontario. It stands 317 metres above sea level. It runs to roughly 10 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. Shoreline comes to about 1.8 km, small enough to learn in a day. Supplies mean a trip to Iroquois Falls, 44 km off. Greater Sudbury sits 247 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Milligan Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Public occurrence data for Cochrane District names northern pike, yellow perch and white sucker. The county list is broader than any single water. At Milligan Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 17°C and January about -18°C. A solid cap is the normal state through winter. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about early May. On average, early May opens the water and mid November closes it again. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. Milligan Lake runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. No car park, ramp or path is recorded within easy reach of the shore. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Marks Lake, 1.6 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Confirm before you fish Milligan Lake.