Ray Lake Fishing in Sudbury, Ontario

• Overview

  You will find Ray Lake in Sudbury, Ontario. It sits in pine and birch. At 3 hectares it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. On size it sits at the modest end of our Sudbury list. Dowling lies 107 km from the water. Greater Sudbury sits 129 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Ray Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Sudbury records list smallmouth bass, northern pike, yellow perch and Iowa darter among the fish reported. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. The shape of Ray Lake decides where the fish sit.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 17°C in July and bottom out at -16°C in January. The season turns properly here, and fish follow it closely. Ice-out usually falls in late April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. The lid tends to go about late April and return around mid November. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. It sets the rhythm of the year at Ray Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. Nothing formal is recorded here: no ramp, no car park, no marked path. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Dividing Lake sits 1.6 km off and takes the overflow. Check the current arrangement for Ray Lake.