Exploring the Thirty Thousand Islands
This is a complex landscape, and boaters and paddlers are encouraged to carry good, up-to-date maps and navigational charts. The French River Delta, Shawanaga Bay and The Massasauga are made up of hundreds of islands, shoals and channels, which can be confusing without maps and charts, and a hazard to boat propellers. Be sure to check out Government of Canada navigation charts.
French River Provincial Park‘s landscape is unique even for Georgian Bay, with bedrock channels and pine-covered granite islands cut from the Canadian Shield by glacial meltwater 10,000 years ago.
This angler from the early 1900s is enjoying a tasty shore lunch.
Anglers enjoy good fishing for large- and small-mouth bass, northern pike, walleye, and even Muskie (“the fish of 10,000 casts”). Big spinners work well for pike and Muskie (especially classic red and white ones), while bass go for surface baits that splash and make noise. For walleye, some anglers swear by worms on jigs, while others go for minnows.
The canoeing, kayaking and boating is fantastic. This is a backcountry camping park, so there is no campground, but there are many lodges within the park if cabins are your style. Contact the French River Resorts Association for more information.
Sturgeon Bay
You’ll find the same fish species as on the French River, and the same lures and techniques work, but the setting here is Shawanaga Bay, a huge inlet reaching inland from Georgian Bay with hundreds of islands and lots of underwater structure that fish like to hang out around.
The park has a full-service campground, especially handy in the fall (when fishing here is just that little bit better). The park also has several cabins for rent.
The Massasauga
The Massasauga Provincial Park occupies the section of the Thirty Thousand Islands from Parry Sound south to the Moon River, hallowed waters for anglers.
You’ll find small- and large-mouth bass, lunker walleye, northern pike, and fabled Muskie fishing (Moon Bay is where the Canadian record Muskie was caught).
We recommend fall for this fishing trip, after the pleasure boating and paddling is done for the season. Prefer to car camp? Killbear Provincial Park has good access to this area, with electrical sites and showers open into late October.
Wakami Lake
Wakami Lake Provincial Park is — according to Ontario Parks fisheries biologists — the most productive walleye fishery in FMZ 10. Soft bodied baits that look like worms, frogs and other small critters are good. It also has a good whitefish population. Whitefish are deep in summer, and have small mouths – small spinners or jigs can work.
The park has a quiet, rustic campground off the beaten path (meaning there’s not much competition for fishing!). The campground offers waterfront sites, good docking facilities, and boat rentals.
If you’ve never fished Northeastern Ontario, isn’t it about time you booked a trip?