Fishing Hot Spots

Species Catfish Season Spring: Mid-May to mid-June Coordinates 50°23€² 7€³N, 96°48€²39€³W Location: Flows through Red River Valley, Minnesota, and North Dakota; empties into Lake Winnipeg Length: 885 kilometres Hottest spot: Current scours just downstream of the Selkirk dam Best for channel catfish American anglers wet their pants talking about the channel cat fishing in the mighty Mississippi. I can’t imagine...

Species Bass, Crappie Season Fall: October Location: Borders Minnesota and Ontario Surface area: 890 square kilometres Hottest spot: Northwest Bay In 2012, ranked #36 in all-time hot spots In 2000, we picked northwestern Ontario’s Rainy Lake as Canada’s hottest spot for trophy smallmouth, and it remained high on our annual ranking for the following few years.

Species Giant bluefin tuna Season Summer: last week of July Location: Prince Edward Island Hottest spot: Wherever MacNeill takes you Best for giant bluefin tuna Word on the wharf at North Lake was that a giant bluefin tuna had been landed, so I decided to stick around. Boat after empty boat slipped past the breakwater until...

Species Bass, Carp, Muskellunge, Pike, Salmon, Steelhead, Trout, Walleye/Pickerel Season Late winter: February and March Location: Bordering Ontario and New York Source: Lake ErieLength: 58 kilometresHottest spot: Whirlpool In 2012, ranked #17 in all-time hot spots Connecting Lakes Erie and Ontario, Niagara is world famous—but not for its fishing. We’ve tried hard to change that over the...

Species Pike, Trout, Walleye/Pickerel Season Summer: June Coordinates 50°57′N 73°42′W Location: Jamésie region, QuébecSurface area: 2,335 square kilometresHottest spot: The bays and around the northern islands In 2012, ranked #12 in all-time hot spots The trees lining Mistassini may be stunted, but the lake’s fish sure aren’t. A 10-hour drive northwest of Montreal, Quebec’s largest natural lake...

Species Trout Season Summer: July and August Location: Newfoundland and Labrador In 2011, Best for brook trout Maybe it’s the pike picking off only the weakest fish or the chub providing abundant year-round protein. Or perhaps it’s the incredible fly hatches or the superior genetics of the fish themselves. Whichever is the case, most of...

Species Walleye/Pickerel Season Late winter, early spring: March Coordinates 52°7€²N 97°15€²W Location: Southern Manitoba Surface area: 24,514 square kilometres Hottest spot: Chalet Beach Best for walleye I don’t believe I’ve spent a single day ice fishing on Lake Winnipeg when at least one member of our three- or four-person party didn’t land at least one double-digit walleye. Most days, in...

Species Bass, Perch, Pike, Trout, Whitefish Season Any Season Location: Southern OntarioSurface area: 744 square kilometresHottest spot: South side of Thorah Island In 2012, ranked #1 in all-time hot spots This hot spot’s nomadic smallmouth can be tough to catch, but when they turn on, there’s no better place to land a true trophy. Despite heavy...

Species Bass, Crappie, Muskellunge, Perch, Pike, Sturgeon, Trout, Walleye/Pickerel, Whitefish Season Year-round Coordinates 49°14′59″N 94°45′03″W Location: Northwestern OntarioSurface area: 4,348.6 square kilometresHottest spot: Tranquil Channel In 2012, ranked #4 in all-time hot spots What can you catch on northwestern Ontario’s Lake of the Woods? Practically whatever you feel like. Covering one million acres, with 100,000 kilometres of shoreline...