Fishing at Murphys Lake, Renfrew County, Ontario

• Overview

  The Renfrew County end of Ontario holds Murphys Lake. It sits at 384 metres above sea level. It measures about 12 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. With about 1.8 km of edge, you can try several depths in one session. Eganville sits 26 km from here and is the nearest stop. Cobden follows at 46 km, then Pembroke at 49 km. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Murphys Lake

  No depth figure appears in our records, so the bank has to tell you. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Survey and observation records for Renfrew County include smallmouth bass, pumpkinseed, yellow perch, rock bass and brook trout. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. Murphys Lake responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 18°C and January near -13°C on the long-run figures. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. Ice-out usually falls in late April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. The open-water window runs from around late April to about late November in an average year. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. It sets the rhythm of the year at Murphys Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  There is no clear statement anywhere on who can fish it. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Stonedam Lake at 1.6 km is the sensible second choice. Nothing here settles the position at Murphys Lake for certain.