Peyton Lake Fishing near South River, Ontario

• Overview

  Set in Parry Sound District, Ontario, this is Peyton Lake. The bank gives way to rolling bush. Roughly 34 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. The edge covers about 5.2 km, enough to hold several distinct areas. Compared with other Ontario water on our list, it sits high. Start from South River, 19 km down the road. It is 158 km to Barrie, the nearest city. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Peyton 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. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Across Parry Sound District, recorded fish include smallmouth bass, pumpkinseed, yellow perch, northern pike and rock bass. Species recorded across the county may be limited to a few waters. At Peyton Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -12°C to 18°C. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Winter locks it down, and late April brings it back. On the long-run averages the water opens up around late April and starts locking again about late November. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. That is the shape of the year on Peyton Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No made access is recorded, so a short walk in is the likely arrangement. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Little Peyton Lake, 1.4 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing on Peyton Lake should be assumed from this page alone.