Spitfire Lake in Franklin County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Spitfire Lake is one of the Franklin County listings for New York. Around the bank it is pine and birch. At 269 acres this is proper open water rather than a pond. The outline measures near 3.1 miles, so local knowledge counts. It ranks high for size among our Franklin County listings. 9.2 miles away sits Saranac Lake, the nearest town. Ville-Marie is the closest city, 82 miles away. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Spitfire Lake

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. County-wide records name brook trout, white sucker and brown trout. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Read Spitfire Lake for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warmest month averages 65°F, the coldest about 13°F. The season turns properly here, and fish follow it closely. The lid usually goes in late April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Break-up sits around late April on average, with the water closing again about early December. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. Time your trip to Spitfire Lake by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Public data shows nothing built here, so treat the whole approach as informal. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Upper Saint Regis Lake sits 0.7 miles off and takes the overflow. Where Spitfire Lake is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.