Fishing Moccasin Lake in Algoma, Ontario

• Overview

  In Ontario, Moccasin Lake belongs to Algoma. Height above sea level is 457 metres. This is sizeable water at about 1.70 sq km, and a boat opens up most of it. At about 14 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. Few waters listed in Algoma are bigger. The nearest place of any size is Elliot Lake, 40 km away. Greater Sudbury sits 123 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Moccasin Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Across Algoma, recorded fish include walleye, northern pike and Iowa darter. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. Moccasin Lake gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 18°C; by January the average is down near -13°C. Seasons are distinct, and each one fishes differently. Once it clears, about late April, the fishing comes on quickly. Open water usually runs from late April until about late November. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. Plan any trip to Moccasin Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Should this one be busy, Moonshine Lake is 4 km off. For Moccasin Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.