Fishing Bean Lake in Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  Ontario holds Bean Lake, in Thunder Bay District. Height above sea level is 587 metres. With some 15 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Bank access stretches around 1.6 km in total. On size it sits at the modest end of our Thunder Bay District list. The closest town, Grand Marais, is 32 km away. Beyond it, Neebing at 63 km and Parkdale at 80 km. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Bean Lake

  We hold no depth figure for this one. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Survey and observation records for Thunder Bay District include cisco, blackfin cisco, rainbow smelt and bloater. It is the county picture; the agency list is water-specific. Work Bean Lake in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -15°C and July at about 17°C, the water has a wide range to work through. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. Ice-out usually falls in early May, and the weeks after it fish hardest. On average, early May opens the water and mid November closes it again. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Bean Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Nothing is listed nearby for parking or launching a boat. A light spinning outfit with a small box of lures and some bait covers most of what swims here. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. South Bean Lake at 0.8 km is the sensible second choice. None of that is settled for Bean Lake in what we hold.