Wabigoon Lake is a murky water lake that is known for some very good fishing. It’s a fairly shallow lake compared to a lot of the other popular drive-to lakes in Canada. The lake has good fishing for smallmouth bass, northern pike, walleye, muskie, perch and crappie are here too in lower numbers. It’s an easy lake to fish and it’s known for having good action with some big fish here too.
Shallow Water Fishing
Wabigoon Lake is really shallow compared to many of the other popular drive to fishing lakes in Ontario. Combine that with the murky water and you will find a lot of fish much shallower here compared to other lakes.
Murky Water Presentations
The water is very murky on Wabigoon Lake. Anglers will have very little visibility when trying to look through the water. You will have a lot more success by using brighter presentations with your lures and live bait rigs. Good electronics are key to understanding your surroundings to avoid hitting your motor on a rock as well as finding good fishing cover and structure. Because this lake is a fairly shallow lake, many anglers will find rocks and vegetation the old fashioned way and that is by casting lures that sink down enough to let them know if there are rocks, weeds or wood in those areas.
Fish the Bays
There are so many bays to fish on Wabigoon Lake that you can easily fish this pattern early in the season and expect to find good numbers of pike, walleye, smallmouth bass and panfish in the numerous bays on this lake. Muskie will also be found in the bays, however, the muskie opener is a little bit later in the season, so you cannot target these fish until then.
Fish the Islands
Wabigoon Lake is loaded with islands, which is great because this gives you more options to get out of the wind on the windier days of your trip. There are plenty of islands located closer to the main lake shorelines and these islands give you quick access to some offshore fishing. The islands out in the middle of the lake are plentiful as well, so when the winds are right, you can run and gun if you want to fish a bunch of islands as your main fishing pattern. Just be careful flying around this lake though because there are rocks offshore and the visibility on this lake is brutal.
Fish the Points
Wabigoon Lake has plenty of main lake points, secondary points and points off of islands. This is a pattern you will definitely be fishing at some point on your trip. Find the points with some weeds and rocks mixed in and a better drop-off from shore and you will find a variety of fish from spring through fall.
Fish the Rock Humps
There are a lot of rocks on Wabigoon Lake, so you have to be careful with the stained water. You will need good electronics to help you find some of these offshore rock humps. The fishing can be very good on these spots from summer through fall.
Fish the Shorelines
The shorelines can be very productive all season long, which is a little weird for bigger Canadian lakes. On most bigger lakes, the better bite will be away from shore during the summer and most of the fall, but here, you can work the shorelines and pick off pike, walleye, smallmouth bass, muskie and plenty of panfish too.
Fish the Weeds
Weeds hold a variety of fish on Wabigoon Lake, so don’t be shocked if you run into just about every major species of fish in the lake. The hard part is finding the weeds due to the water clarity. Visible weeds above the water’s surface will help the angler, however, if you can find some of the areas with submerged weeds, you may have some awesome spots to fish.
Fishing Regulations
Ontario Regulations (Wabigoon and Dinorwic Lakes are in Zone 5)
