Windblown Lake in Thunder Bay District: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Windblown Lake sits in Thunder Bay District, out in Ontario. It stands 448 metres above sea level. At about 50 hectares, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. Some 5.2 km of bank gives room to move when the wind turns. It is high ground by Ontario standards. Atikokan sits 68 km from the bank. Grand Marais lies 84 km off, Ely another 96 km. No boundary runs near, so the local rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Windblown Lake

  Depth here is unknown, so count the lead down before committing. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Open biodiversity records for Thunder Bay District list cisco, blackfin cisco, rainbow smelt, bloater and shortjaw cisco. County records show the wider picture rather than this one place. On Windblown Lake that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -16°C to 18°C. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around late April. Average temperatures cross freezing around late April in spring and again near mid November in autumn. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. That shapes the year on Windblown Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Nothing in our records says who may fish here. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Keep the gear simple: light line, small hooks, split shot and a couple of proven lures. Gates get locked out of season on water like this. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. The nearest alternative is Deadman's Lake, 0.8 km out. Confirm before you fish Windblown Lake.