Smellie Lake in Kenora District: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  In Ontario, Smellie Lake falls inside Kenora District. It stands 352 metres above sea level. It measures about 96 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Around 4.3 km of margin, front to back. Vermilion Bay is the closest place, 11 km off. Then Dryden, 56 km, and Kenora, 74 km. Neighbouring water: Caribou Lake near enough 1.6 km, Blue Lake just 3.8 km, Indian Lake near enough 3.9 km, Jake Lake just 4.1 km and Edward Lake near enough 4.8 km. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Smellie Lake

  Nothing in our records gives a depth for this one. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Fish documented in Kenora District include northern pike, longnose sucker, white sucker and johnny darter. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. The shape of Smellie Lake rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -18°C and July at about 19°C, the water has a wide range to work through. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. Ice-out usually falls in late April, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Average temperatures cross freezing around late April in spring and again near mid November in autumn. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. It sets the rhythm of the year at Smellie Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing in our records says who may fish here. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. For the pike, wire up and throw larger lures along the weed edges. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Failing this one, try Caribou Lake, 1.6 km away. For Smellie Lake in particular, ask before you travel.