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Best chinook salmon lakes in Ontario

11 Ontario waters hold chinook salmon, 11 mapped with real state-agency depth surveys. Ranked below by size and depth-data quality — open any water to see exactly where to fish it: depth contours, scored spots with plain-English reasons, seasonal windows and bait picks. The king. Deep, cold open water all summer; staged off river mouths in fall. Follows the 42-52°F band.

1. Lake Nipissing — 230 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass
2. Lake Nipissing — 230 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass
3. Lake Simcoe — 135 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike
4. Michipicoten River — 69 ft max · survey depth data · Walleye, Northern Pike, Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon
5. Grand River section — 10 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike
6. Kaministiquia River — 30 ft max · survey depth data · Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, Northern Pike, Crappie
7. Blackstone Harbour — 62 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass
8. Woods Bay — 39 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass
9. Moon River Bay — 23 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass
10. Earl Rowe Lake — 10 ft max · survey depth data · Rainbow Trout, Chinook Salmon, Brown Trout
11. Whitefish River — 23 ft max · survey depth data · Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Walleye, White Bass

When to fish chinook salmon in Ontario

• Spring 5–40 ft — Cold surface water lets kings feed shallow — warm-water pockets near river mouths and the first drop-off hold bait and fish.
• Summer 50–120 ft — Kings ride the 42-52°F band well below the thermocline — deep basins and steep structure where bait schools stack.
• Fall 10–50 ft — Spawning-run fish stage off tributary mouths before running the rivers — the year's best big-fish window.
• Winter 30–90 ft — Immature kings winter deep and scattered; a slow deep troll finds loners.

Also in Ontario: best largemouth bass lakes · best smallmouth bass lakes · best walleye lakes · best white bass lakes · best sauger lakes · best northern pike lakes · best crappie lakes · best bluegill lakes · best channel catfish lakes · best rainbow trout lakes · best muskellunge lakes · best yellow perch lakes · best freshwater drum lakes · best common carp lakes · best longnose gar lakes · best coho salmon lakes · best lake trout lakes · best brown trout lakes · best brook trout lakes · best landlocked salmon lakes · best lake whitefish lakes · best burbot lakes · best rock bass lakes · best white perch lakes · best cisco (lake herring) lakes · best splake lakes · best pumpkinseed lakes · best brown bullhead lakes · best lake sturgeon lakes

Chinook Salmon elsewhere: Québec · Michigan · Washington · Alaska · New York