Silver Lake - Say Hi Family Day Weekend

[scarkner]

I am hosting an annual "ice fishing day" at Silver Lake on February 14th.

If you happen to be on the lake next weekend (Family day weekend, February 14th), come over and say hi!

There is a public launch/access off Highway 7, our group is on the far shore (about a 500 meter walk).

There should be around 2 dozen people on the ice.

PM or post here if you have questions.

[BigDaddyD]

How thick is the ice. Can trucks gain assess to the lake by Hwy 7.

[fish and brewis]

BigDaddy. I was there 2 weeks ago and there was 2 feet of ice and a jeep made it out by the island so there is access but I don't know exactly where he got on from.

[scarkner]

Two years ago we drove right across the lake. But personally, that scares the crap outta me.

There is a summer boat launch off Hwy 7 right across from the island, but I don't know if the plows will have kicked up such big snow banks that you would be able to use it.

There are no other access points that I know of for a vehicle.

[flewdogg]

So are you guys fishing across from the Hwy 7 launch/public picnic area, i.e., near the island? Are lakers the target? I have always been intrigued by Silver Lake as I love fishing for lakers. I've been camping there a few times, it's a nice little provincial park. I have fished it a few times from a boat trying for lakers but never had much success, even when I marked a bunch of them off the island in spring right after ice out. I've never tried ice fishing for them and wonder if the success rate is better from the ice?

Would be interested in joining if I can persuade a certain lady in my life that this is a legit Valentine's Day activity!

[scarkner]

We are fishing from my cottage on the other side of the lake. There are usually quite a few groups of people on the lake family-day weekend (parking at the access point and fishing on the north side of the island where it drops off) so the main reason for my message was to let people know that the "big" group on the other side of the tiny lake (just 500 meters wide) are also fish-hawkers. We will have a nice fire going if you want to warm up.

As for trout...

I have owned the cottage for about 5 years, I fish every summer for trout and have NEVER caught one. I see large fish near the bottom all summer on my fish finder, but just haven't yet found the secret to getting them to hit.

We do catch trout in the winter, but with 24 people fishing from 11am until dark last year we caught 2 (4 & 6 lb). The previous year we caught 0. So in terms of Silver Lake being a productive lake for trout the answer is most assuredly "no". However, the easy access from HWY 7 means it will remain popular anyway. The lake has a high population of smaller bass and pike in the summer.

Last year there were (if memory serves) perhaps 10 smaller groups on the ice ranging from 5 to 10 people per group. There were no vehicles on the ice last year as the snow was too deep. The previous year the snow was very shallow so there were multiple vehicles, we even managed to plow a nice skating rink.

[zippyfx]

NOt always accurate but fish online indicates the following species:

Fish Species Found in Water Body
Northern Pike, Smallmouth Bass, Splake, Rock Bass, Lake Whitefish, Bluegill, Lake Trout, Brown Bullhead, Burbot, Walleye, Pumpkinseed, Rainbow Trout, Yellow Perch, White Sucker, Yellow Bullhead, Largemouth Bass, Lake Trout

Lake trout are currently out of Season at the lake.


Lake trout stocking:
2010 Lake Trout Yearling 10128
2009 Lake Trout Yearling 5000
2008 Lake Trout Yearling 10000
2007 Lake Trout Yearling 7500
2006 Lake Trout Yearling 5000

http://www.giscoeapp.lrc.gov.on.ca/serv ... ap&lang=en

[flewdogg]

Thanks Scarkner for that clarification. As for Silver's status as a laker hole, I agree with you based on my (somewhat limited) experience there that it's not that productive. But it's easy to get to, that's for sure. Maybe ease of access is the cause of the problem.

In general I have always had the greatest success jigging for lakers. You have probably tried that, but I would recommend you just pound minnow-tipped jigs all day long when you're over them in the summer. Will probably give the best chance of success. Don't forget to add a stinger hook of some sort to increase your chances of a hook up. Stingers have worked wonders for me the last couple years!

[smitty55]

Lake trout are currently out of Season at the lake.

Zippy, Lakers are open all year on Silver Lake. Check under additional opportunities.


Cheers

[scarkner]

Silver Lake is pretty weird this week.

When I was there last week the ice was excellent with light powder over solid ice.

This weekend there was about a foot (sometimes more) water sitting on the ice. I can't even call it slush, you would step down in some spots and the water was over the top of your boots, pull out your foot and the hole is full of water. When we drilled holes the water would come gushing up through the hole we drilled.

There was a solid 22 inches of ice, but the water level on the lake is clearly very high right now and finding any way possible to reach the surface. Walking was nasty and everything was wet wet wet.

All this wouldn't have been too bad if the fish were biting, but as it turned out, not a single damn thing.

Dissapointing weekend from a fishing and weather perspective, but the cottage was warm, the food was good and the hockey was entertaining.

[RJ]

There was a solid 22 inches of ice, but the water level on the lake is clearly very high right now and finding any way possible to reach the surface. Walking was nasty and everything was wet wet wet.

The lake level hasn't risen, it's simply the weight of the snow pushing down on the lake making the water go somewhere or anywhere it can.

RJ