Dowling Lake
Walleye opens Sat, May 16 — it lies 70 km north of Red Lake.
Dowling Lake is the 689th-largest of 1,629 named lakes in Ontario Far North, with 14 miles of charted shoreline and 2 islands.
MNRF aquatic resource surveys
Fish species
On this water
Lodges & operators 0
No lodge is based on Dowling Lake itself. These are the closest that are — each on its own water, with the straight-line distance from here.
- Fireside Lodge✓ Verifiedlodgedrive-tohousekeeping29 mi away
Home water: Little Vermilion Lake
Drive-to lodge on Little Vermilion Lake near Sioux Lookout, the only camp on the lake, with boat and portage access to a multi-lake system (site cites both 9- and 11-lake figures) fished for walleye, northern pike, muskie, tiger muskie and smallmouth bass. Cabins are housekeeping style with fully equipped kitchens, and home-cooked meals can be pre-ordered separately. Per-person packages bundle a 16 ft Lund with a 20 hp Yamaha.
- lodgefly-inhousekeeping29 mi away
Home water: Little Vermilion Lake
Fly-in housekeeping lodge on Little Vermilion Lake north of Red Lake, reached by float plane from a base on the Chukuni River, and the only lodge on the lake. Fishing is for northern pike and walleye, with a catch-and-release policy releasing all pike over 35.5 inches. The operator also runs three fly-in outpost cabins northwest of the lodge on Hornell, Mantricia and Warrington lakes plus fly-out guided moose hunts; Warrington and Mantricia straddle the Ontario/Manitoba border and require licences for both provinces.
- Geary's Manitoba Trophy Outposts Inc.✓ Verifiedoutpost networkfly-inhousekeeping29 mi away
Home water: Little Vermilion Lake
Family-run fly-in operation north of Red Lake, Ontario, pairing a small housekeeping lodge on Little Vermilion Lake with three remote outpost camps on Warrington, Mantricia and Hornell lakes, all reached only by float plane. Trophy northern pike and walleye are the draw, with Warrington and Mantricia straddling the Ontario-Manitoba boundary and fished under Manitoba limits; fly-out moose hunts are also sold.
- Black Bear Lodge✓ Verifiedlodgeamerican40 mi away
Home water: Red Lake
Black Bear Lodge is an American-plan fishing lodge operating since 1951 at the far west end of Red Lake, one of two lodges on that stretch of the lake. Guests fish walleye, northern pike, lake trout, smallmouth bass and muskie, with burbot, perch and whitefish also present. The one-week all-inclusive package covers a log cabin (electricity by day, battery lights at night), breakfast and dinner in the main lodge, sack-lunch fixings, one shore lunch, and a 16-foot boat with a 20 hp motor plus 5 gallons of gas per boat per day.
2026 regulations
Seasons & limitsFMZ 2
- Special limit on this water — Lake Sturgeon: Closed all year · Refer to zone-wide seasons and limits (All waters located within the portion of Zone 2 from the Ontario / Manitoba interprovincial boundary east along the line of 52°35’N. latitude, to the intersection with 93°50’W. longitude, thence south to the intersection with 52°10’N. latitude, thence east to the intersection with 92°10’W. longitude, thence south to the Zone 2 boundary, including all of the waters within Woodland Caribou Provincial Park; thence in a westerly direction to the Ontario/Manitoba interprovincial boundary, thence northerly to the intersection with 52°35’N. latitude.)
Ice-out here is typically mid May (modeled from regional ice records).
| Species | Season | Sport licence | Conservation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Pike | Open all year | S - 4, none between 70 - 90 cm (27.6 - 35.4 in.), not more than 1 greater than 90 cm (35.4 in.) | C - 2, none between 70 - 90 cm (27.6 - 35.4 in.), not more than 1 greater than 90 cm (35.4 in.) |
| Walleye and Sauger or any combination | Jan. 1 - Apr. 14 & 3rd Sat. in May - Dec. 31 | S - 4, not more than 1 greater than 46 cm (18.1 in.) | C - 2, not more than 1 greater than 46 cm (18.1 in.) |
Compiled from MNRF Recreational Fishing Regulations open data (2026 season, zone-wide rules shown for this lake's species). Regulations change by variation order — confirm with the official FMZ 2 summary before you fish.
Comparable trips
Similar water
Same region, overlapping species, comparable size.
- Sidace Lake2 shared species · 679 ac
- Strachan Lake2 shared species · 699 ac
- Keigat Lake2 shared species · 621 ac
- Balson Lake2 shared species · 617 ac
- Pahkayyahkahmahshek/Zeller Lake2 shared species · 617 ac
Around this water