Norwest Lake Fishing Guide, Greater Sudbury, Ontario

• Overview

  Greater Sudbury in Ontario is where Norwest Lake sits. Everything around it is lake country bush. Around 52 hectares of surface means several distinct areas to work. At about 7.1 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. The nearest place of any size is Espanola, 25 km away. It is 42 km to Greater Sudbury, the nearest city. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Norwest Lake

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Records held for Greater Sudbury cover smallmouth bass, yellow perch, northern pike and pumpkinseed. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Treat Norwest Lake as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 18°C; by January the average is down near -12°C. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around late April. Averages suggest open water from about late April through to roughly early December. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. Anyone fishing Norwest Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. Brady Lake sits 1.5 km off and takes the overflow. Where Norwest Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.