Welcome to our Kenora, Ontario Fishing Home Page
Kenora, Ontario is the most popular part of Lake of the Woods. This is where you are going to find the most services, people and basically everything you will need for an ideal fishing vacation. The downside is that you will see more people out here boating and fish fishing than on the other parts of Lake of the Woods in Canada. However, you can easily find some good fishing spots that you can enjoy all to yourself just 15 to 20 minutes from downtown Kenora. You will still see plenty of boaters out and around, but you can find so many spots to fish all by yourself.
This area is an awesome fishing vacation destination as anglers catch lots of smallmouth bass, walleye and northern pike to go along with some muskie, perch, crappie and largemouth bass too.
Primary Species of Fish
Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike & Muskie
Lake of the Woods is incredible for fishing and the Kenora area is no different. In this area of the lake, the smallmouth bass fishing is very good for numbers of fish and there are plenty of quality bass available too. Anglers will catch plenty of smallmouth bass in the 3 to 4 pound range if they target bigger bass, but expect to catch plenty of smaller bass in that 12 to 16 inch range as you are pursuing a bigger bass.
Most anglers come here for the walleye fishing and the walleye fishing can be very good. Some anglers catch plenty of walleye without having to travel far from downtown Kenora, but the better walleye fishing will usually be a 15 to 30 minute boat ride away from town. As you get further into the larger, more open part of the lake, the walleye fishing tends to improve.
Northern pike are found all over the place, but you will usually find a lot more smallmouth bass if you are fishing rocky areas. There is a lot more rock than weeds in this part of the lake, but you can find some weedy bays if you’re willing to go for a 20 to 30 minute boat ride from downtown Kenora. Muskie are also available, but you will definitely have to put some work in to find some of these fish. The fishing gets better for muskie as you get further away from the crowds.Northern pike are found all over the place, but you will usually find a lot more smallmouth bass if you are fishing rocky areas. There is a lot more rock than weeds in this part of the lake, but you can find some weedy bays if you’re willing to go for a 20 to 30 minute boat ride from downtown Kenora. Muskie are also available, but you will definitely have to put some work in to find some of these fish. The fishing gets better for muskie as you get further away from the crowds.
Secondary Species of Fish
Largemouth Bass, Perch & Crappie
Largemouth bass, perch and crappie are here and if you know how to target them, you may be able to catch them. However, these fish are secondary for most anglers that fish in this area compared to the northern pike, smallmouth bass, walleye and muskie.
Fishing Tips
We have plenty of fishing tips in the following sections:
You can also learn more about the lake by reading further below.
Fishing the Bays
There are so many bays in the Kenora area. Most of them will have rocks, but some will have sand or weeds in them. The bays are great for targeting a variety of fish in the spring and early summer as well as fall. The larger bays and the bays that are close to deeper water will usually hold some fish all summer long.
You will find smallmouth bass, northern pike, walleye and other fish in the bays too. As water temperatures warm up though, most of the better quality fish will move out of the smaller bays and onto main lake structure. That doesn’t mean that you can’t catch some nice fish in the smaller bays from spring through fall though, so view each bay as its own separate spot. Some bays will be very unproductive when warmer summer temperatures arrive, while others may produce some of the best fishing you’ve ever experienced.
Fishing the Drop-offs
There are so many spots where there are good drop-offs with deeper water close to shallow water. You can find some awesome drop-offs along the shorelines off of the islands, the ledges and reefs. From summer through fall, you’re going to find a good amount of fish on these drop-offs that lead out into deeper water.
Fishing the Points
There are a lot of points to fish whether they are on the main shorelines or on an island. Fishing the points is a good pattern here from spring through fall. All of the major game fish will use these points, so you just have to figure out which ones are holding the fish that want to eat on the day that you are here fishing.
Fishing the Islands
There are so many islands here to fish that you could just fish the islands and never run out of good water to fish. The islands will hold lots of smallmouth bass with other fish such as walleye, northern pike and muskie too. Perch and crappie can often be found mixed in as well, but you’re going to find a lot more smallmouth bass relating to the islands in the Kenora area.
Fishing the Reefs
The reefs are a great summer and fall pattern for smallmouth bass, northern pike and walleye. Some big muskie will hang around these reefs too, so don’t be shocked if you see a giant in these spots. There are a lot of reefs in this area, so make sure you get a good map and some good electronics so you can find these spots quickly. You also want to be careful when fishing these spots because there are some very large rocks just below the surface in many locations.
Fishing the Rocks
There are rocks everywhere so plan on fishing the rocks while fishing the Kenora part of Lake of the Woods. Smallmouth bass love the rocks and you’ll find plenty of them all over the place. Pike, walleye, muskie and other fish relate to the rocks here as well.
Fishing the Weeds
There are some weeds in this area, but definitely a lot more rocks. When you find the weeds, you will usually catch more northern pike than smallmouth bass or walleye, but some spots will hold some nice bass and walleye too. The deeper weed edges will usually be the best pattern when fishing the areas with weeds.
Fishing Regulations
Ontario Regulations (Lake of the Woods is in Zone 5)
Go to the Zone 5 section under Ontario’s fishing regulations and make sure you know the general regulations as well as any special regulations that may be set for this area.
