Fishing Sanctuary Lake in Big River No. 555, Saskatchewan

• Overview

  Out in Big River No. 555, Saskatchewan, sits Sanctuary Lake. It sits at 598 metres above sea level. With some 77 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. At about 5.9 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. Nearest place of any size is Shellbrook, 108 km away. The nearest city of size is Saskatoon, 228 km away. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Sanctuary Lake

  Depth figures are not published for this one. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Survey and observation records for Big River No. 555 include cisco, northern pike, yellow perch, white sucker and walleye. The list covers the county rather than this water alone, so treat it as a guide. At Sanctuary Lake the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 16°C, with January the cold end at about -18°C. Everything is compressed into the middle of the year. Break-up comes around late April, and the run that follows is short and strong. Open water usually runs from late April until about early November. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. Time your trip to Sanctuary Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. No launch point is recorded nearby, so this is a bank water unless you carry a boat in. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. Should this one be busy, Lone Island Lake is 3.9 km off. For Sanctuary Lake, the notice at the access point is the final word.