Fishing Slaughterhouse Lake in Cochrane District, Ontario

• Overview

  You will find Slaughterhouse Lake in Cochrane District, Ontario. It stands 270 metres above sea level. It runs to roughly 10 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. Shoreline comes to about 1.6 km, small enough to learn in a day. Cochrane lies 3 km from the water. Greater Sudbury sits 284 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Slaughterhouse Lake

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Cochrane District records list northern pike, yellow perch, white sucker and Iowa darter among the fish reported. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. The near bank of Slaughterhouse Lake is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 17°C and January at -19°C. The freeze holds for the better part of the year. Ice-out usually falls in early May, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Averages place the thaw at early May and the freeze at mid November. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. It holds true on Slaughterhouse Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. The nearest car park we can see is 1.2 km out, so expect a walk with your gear. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. The nearest alternative is Hector Lake, 1.1 km out. Treat Slaughterhouse Lake as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.