Walleye (pickerel)
Excellent
The fall bite: fish move to the rock and the river mouths; jigs and minnows, stickbaits at night.
Tobin Lake Fishing Report
Updated Fri, Sep 25, 2026 from live weather and water data
Tobin Lake near Nipawin: trophy walleye and pike in a reservoir on the Saskatchewan River, famous for its ice fishing, with a live gauge.
3/5
Fair. Fish the windows.A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Level
313.55 m
Air / High
12 °C / 26 °C
Wind
ENE 12 km/h
Sources: Water Survey of Canada station 05KD004, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.
Today's Fishing Report
Tobin Lake is in its cool-water rhythm: slower presentations and the warmest hours of the day. The gauge reads 313.55 m, holding steady. Today brings a mixed sky, wind ENE around 13 km/h, rising pressure near 1016 hPa and a high of 26 °C. Water sits around 16 °C for the season (estimated). With the full moon, the solunar majors run 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM: the windows to build the day around.
Northern pike (jackfish)
Good
The fall feed: big swimbaits and spoons in the shallows where the baitfish gather.
Tie on: Float and roe · Swung fly through the tailout · Jerkbait, long pauses · Hair jig on the rock. Prime windows: 10:25 AM-12:25 PM, 10:25 PM-12:25 AM, 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Cooler at 20 °C with a rain chance. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.
Before you go
Saskatchewan requires a fishing licence for most fishing, from C$15.00. Saskatchewan fishing licence: cost, rules and where to buy →
Chasing walleye (pickerel) here? Check the size and bag limits with Saskatchewan before you keep anything; the Walleye (pickerel) page has the seasons and the tactics.
Fishing times for Tobin Lake today
Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today from sunrise (06:45), sunset (18:44), the moon and today's score. Tap a bar to see why.
Bite planner
Solunar majors 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM; minor 4:55 AM-5:55 AM. Full Moon, 99% lit.
Water and weather
Live readings from Water Survey of Canada station 05KD004 (TOBIN LAKE AT THE SPILLWAY).
Lake level, last 30 days
Water Survey of Canada real-time hydrometric data, station 05KD004. Latest reading 2026-09-25 06:20.
Right now
Latest readings
Air temp12 °C
High / Low26 °C / 12 °C
WindENE 12 km/h, gusts 22 km/h
Pressure101.58 kPa, rising
Sky / Rain45% cloud, 10%
Sunrise / Sunset06:45 / 18:44
MoonFull Moon, 99%
Water temp (seasonal)~16 °C est.
7-day fishing forecast: which day to fish Tobin Lake
The best day on Tobin Lake this week looks like Sunday Sep 27, at 4 out of 5, against 3 today. Every day is scored by the same engine as the report above: pressure trend first, then wind, sky and season. Pick a species and the plan for that day changes with it.
Best day this week: Sunday, Sep 27 — good at 4/5, falling pressure, usually the best window of a week.
Today, Sep 25 — Fair
A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
- Solunar majors
- 10:25 AM-12:25 PM and 10:25 PM-12:25 AM
- Minor period
- 4:55 AM-5:55 AM
- Sun
- 06:45 to 18:44
- Moon
- Full Moon, 99% lit
- Sky and wind
- Overcast, 23 km/h
- Rain chance
- 10%
Scores are a planning aid built from forecast data, not a promise.
Species guide
The species that matter on Tobin Lake: seasons written for the Canadian year, and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.
Walleye (pickerel)
Spring opener to fall, and the ice
Called pickerel in much of Ontario and Manitoba. The fish of Lake of the Woods, Lake Winnipeg and the Red River, Lake Diefenbaker, Tobin Lake, Lake Erie and the Bay of Quinte. Most zones close in spring for the spawn. The fall bite: fish move to the rock and the river mouths; jigs and minnows, stickbaits at night.
Northern pike (jackfish)
Spring, fall and the ice
Called jackfish on the prairies. Found in almost every lake and slow river from Ontario to Alberta; big fish in the cold, deep lakes. The fall feed: big swimbaits and spoons in the shallows where the baitfish gather.
Yellow perch
Year-round; the ice season at Lake Simcoe and Long Point
The ice-fishing fish of Lake Simcoe, Long Point Bay and Lake St. Clair, and a summer staple on every Great Lakes shore. Schools move constantly. Schools tighten on the deeper flats; bait near the bottom.
When to come: the Tobin Lake calendar
Activity by species and month for the Canadian year, and how the water warms and cools. Tap any cell.
Species activity by month
1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted. January is midsummer here.
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Walleye (pickerel)
Northern pike (jackfish)
Yellow perch
SlowPeak
Water temperature through the year
Typical surface temperature for this water type in degrees Celsius; today is around 16 °C (estimated, not a reading).
Angler reports
Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. Nothing here is copied from a shop or a charter. The water log below tracks each day automatically.
No angler reports yetBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Tobin Lake today.
Water log, last days
Auto-logged from live dataThu, Sep 24
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye (pickerel) led the card at excellent. High of 23 °C, wind to 13 km/h.
Wed, Sep 23
3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Walleye (pickerel) led the card at excellent. High of 23 °C, wind to 16 km/h.
Tue, Sep 22
4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Walleye (pickerel) led the card at excellent. High of 23 °C, wind to 21 km/h.
Before you go
Licence
Saskatchewan angling licence, from C$15.00 for a resident adult, with higher prices for other Canadians and visitors. Details and where to buy →
Regulations
Size and bag limits, closed seasons and protected areas are set by Saskatchewan and, in salt water and for salmon, by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and change: confirm the current rules on the agency page linked from the Saskatchewan licence page before you keep anything.
Access
A Saskatchewan angling licence and the Fisheries Habitat Certificate for anglers 16 to 64 are needed; the lake’s rules are linked below, and our Saskatchewan licence page has the fees..
About this water
Tobin Lake is a lake in Saskatchewan, Canada, covered from the Saskatchewan reports and listed in all Canada waters.
Fishing Tobin Lake: the full guide
Tobin Lake
Tobin Lake is the reservoir behind the E.B. Campbell dam on the Saskatchewan River, near Nipawin in east-central Saskatchewan, on the edge of the boreal forest. It has a reputation for trophy walleye and big northern pike, and draws ice anglers from across the prairies in winter. The Water Survey of Canada gauge at the spillway supplies the lake level and the 30-day chart on this page.
Species and seasons
Walleye and northern pike are the fish, with sauger, yellow perch and lake whitefish; the lake is known for large walleye through the ice. The Saskatchewan anglers’ guide sets the seasons and limits.
Where to fish it
The lake is fished from the resorts and launches on its shores, and in winter from ice camps across the bays; the river below the dam is fished as well. The lake is large and the ice can vary with the current from the river. In open water, the Saskatchewan River below the dam and the tailrace area are fished too.
Planning a visit
Nipawin is about three hours from Saskatoon; resorts and outfitters on the lake run ice-fishing trips in winter and boat trips in summer. Upstream, the Nipawin hydroelectric dam forms Codette Lake, a smaller reservoir on the same river.
Ice and seasons
The ice season runs from early winter into March; no agency certifies the ice, and the river current keeps parts of the lake thin. Open water returns in spring, with the walleye season opening after the spawn. Late in the winter, the ice near the old river channel softens first, and the camps move back toward shore.
Reading this report here
The gauge at the spillway shows the reservoir level; the chart shows the last 30 days. The water temperature estimate, labelled as one, follows a northern prairie lake. Pressure and sky build the score.
Licence, access and rules
A Saskatchewan angling licence and the Fisheries Habitat Certificate for anglers 16 to 64 are needed; the lake’s rules are linked below, and our Saskatchewan licence page has the fees.
Common questions
Is Tobin Lake good for walleye?
Yes, it is known for trophy walleye, especially through the ice.
Where is Tobin Lake?
Near Nipawin, on the Saskatchewan River in east-central Saskatchewan.
Is the ice safe on Tobin Lake?
No agency certifies it; the river current keeps parts of the lake thin.
Is fishing good at Tobin Lake right now?
Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day.
Nearby waters
Where this page's numbers come from
- Water level and flow readings
- Environment and Climate Change Canada, Water Survey of Canada real-time hydrometric data, station 05KD004 — TOBIN LAKE AT THE SPILLWAY
- Open-Meteo forecast model
- https://open-meteo.com/
- Moon and solunar windows
- Calculated on this site
- The written guide on this page
Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Readings refresh on a 30-minute window. The full method, with every figure and its source, is on How our reports are made. Something wrong here? Tell us and it goes in the log with the date.