Duncan Lake Fishing Guide, Thunder Bay District, Ontario

• Overview

  Look for Duncan Lake in Thunder Bay District, Ontario. The surface lies 504 metres up. Roughly 1.88 sq km of surface: treat each bay as a water in its own right. There is roughly 7.9 km of bank, more than one visit can cover properly. Size puts it in the front rank of our Thunder Bay District list. Some 38 km away sits Grand Marais, the nearest settlement. Neebing is 78 km and Parkdale 92 km. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Duncan Lake

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Survey and observation records for Thunder Bay District include cisco, blackfin cisco, rainbow smelt, bloater and shortjaw cisco. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. Take Duncan Lake a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 17°C, the coldest about -15°C. The middle months are generous; the ends are demanding. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about late April. The season between ice runs from about late April to mid November. The middle of summer slows a little, with dawn and dusk carrying it. It holds true on Duncan Lake more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. A campsite is mapped about 420 m away, which makes an early start easier. A light spinning outfit with a small box of lures and some bait covers most of what swims here. Parking is often the real limit rather than the bank itself. Some stretches are reserved and marked as such on the ground. Moss Lake sits 1.8 km off and takes the overflow. The position on Duncan Lake is worth confirming on the day.