Rene Lake, Ontario: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Ontario holds Rene Lake, in Sudbury. It stands 389 metres above sea level. The water covers some 16 hectares, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. The edge runs 2.2 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. The closest town, Dowling, is 111 km distant. The big place round here is Greater Sudbury, 134 km distant. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Rene Lake

  Depth here is unknown, so count the lead down before committing. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Sudbury records list smallmouth bass, northern pike, yellow perch, Iowa darter and walleye among the fish reported. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. At Rene Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 17°C, the coldest about -16°C. The freeze holds for the better part of the year. Winter locks it down, and late April brings it back. Break-up sits around late April on average, with the water closing again about mid November. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. The season on Rene Lake follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. 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 access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Delaney Lake, 0.8 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Nothing here settles the position at Rene Lake for certain.