Squirrel Lake in Nipissing District: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Squirrel Lake sits within Nipissing District in Ontario. Everything around it is pine and birch. The water measures roughly 5 hectares, so nothing here is far from anything else. It is one of the smaller waters we list in Nipissing District. Some 62 km away sits Mattawa, the nearest settlement. United Townships of Dysart, Dudley, Harcourt, Guilford, Harburn, Bruton, Havelock, Eyre and Clyde is 66 km and South River 76 km. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Squirrel Lake

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Public occurrence data for Nipissing District names smallmouth bass, cisco, yellow perch and pumpkinseed. Species recorded across the county may be limited to a few waters. On Squirrel Lake a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -13°C and July at about 18°C, the water has a wide range to work through. A solid cap is the normal state through winter. Once it clears, about late April, the fishing comes on quickly. Averages place the thaw at late April and the freeze at late November. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. Anyone fishing Squirrel Lake regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. Overnight stays are possible about 1.1 km out, where camping is mapped. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Nool Lake sits 1.9 km off and takes the overflow. Ask locally about Squirrel Lake if anything is unclear.