Portage lakes · Sydney Lake, Ontario
Creek rides, short walks and a few real portages lead from Sydney and Kilburn to small lakes and falls that are seldom fished. Here’s how to reach each one, what’s there, and when to go.
0
portages to Boot Lake
In high water, run your boat up the creek from the mouth of Bottle Bay.
200ft
walk to Rowdy Lake
Cross at Sydney Falls and cast from shore below the falls.
208ft
deep in Kurt Lake
A small, deep lake with plenty of lake trout and pike.
9
side trips from camp
Small lakes, creeks and falls, all in the Sydney Lake watershed.
Why go
Sydney and Kilburn, with the Sturgeon River between them, give you 17,570 acres, so you never need to leave them. Kilburn itself is no portage at all: you motor up the Sturgeon River through two narrows. But some of our guests’ favourite days start with a creek ride or a walk through the bush to a small lake they have to themselves.
Some of these spots need no portage at all. Boot Lake is a boat ride up a creek in high water, and Rowdy Lake is a 200-foot walk. Others, like Middle Kilburn and Kurt, mean carrying your gear over a trail to a boat waiting on the far side.
The fishing is the draw. These small lakes are seldom fished, and the dark, shallow ones warm up fast in spring, when walleye and pike crowd the creek mouths and falls.
Before you go, tell us which lake you’re heading to. We’ll mark the route and the best spots on your waterproof map, tell you how the water levels look, and make sure you have what you need.
Why these lakes grow big fish →How far, how hard
Here’s how the trips stack up, easiest first. Distances are from where your boat lands.
Boot
No portage in high water. Motor up the creek from Bottle Bay through a narrow rock cut.
Rowdy
A 200-foot walk at Sydney Falls. Fish from shore below the falls.
Middle Kilburn
An easy 330-foot carry from the top of Kilburn’s West Arm.
Kurt
About half a mile. The first 400 feet climb uphill through soggy ground.
Pineneedle
The tough one: a 1 to 1½ hour hike and paddle, east of camp. The trail is closed for now.
Water levels change from year to year. In high water more creeks are passable by boat; in a dry summer some aren’t. Ask at the dock before you set out.
By boat or a short walk
These four are the easiest side trips from camp. Most are at their best in spring and early summer, when the creeks run high and fish crowd the moving water.
West side · off Bottle Bay
55
Acres
0
Portages in high water
8 min
3.1 mi from camp
In most years you can drive your boat up a wide creek from the entrance of Bottle Bay, through a narrow rock cut and into Boot Lake. It’s dark and shallow, so it warms fast, and in late May and early June the walleye are very active, especially in the evening.
Fish the creek below the rock cut and the small waterfall at the far end, where you can cast one way for a walleye and the other way for a pike. There are big ones in here, too. In a dry year, or when the beavers have dammed the cut, ask at the dock first.
Best time
Late May to June, evenings. Watch for black bears at the falls in May.
South end · Sydney Falls
200 ft
Walk around the falls
2,790
Acres
183 ft
Deepest
15 min
5.6 mi from camp
Sydney Lake’s only outlet drops about 7 feet over Sydney Falls into Rowdy Lake. Tie up, walk the 200-foot portage, and fish from shore below the falls. On a clear, calm afternoon you can watch the walleye come up and hit your bait, and smallmouth bass turn up here too.
Rowdy is a separate lake with another camp on it, so you won’t always have it to yourself.
Best time
July afternoons. There’s no boat on Rowdy, so bring a rod you can cast well from shore.
Kilburn · top of the Centre Arm
775
Acres in Leano Lake
72 ft
Deepest
The north end of Kilburn’s Centre Arm is fed by a creek from Leano Lake that cascades through a boulder field. The Centre Arm is reached through a narrows north of the Trout Bay entrance that’s easy to miss.
Look for the opening in the reeds big enough for a boat, follow the two turns to the base of the falls, and try a few casts in the hole below. Then take a walk up the portage trail on the right side of the falls. No boat is kept on Leano Lake; if you'd like to fish above the falls, ask at the dock about taking a canoe.
Best time
High water in spring. It’s rocky in there, so go slow.
Kilburn · Trout Bay Arm
45
Acres
10–20 ft
Deepest
29 min
9.2 mi from camp, through 2 narrows
At the north end of Trout Bay there’s a small lake you can run into when the water is high. It is seldom fished, with lots of walleye and some pike.
Getting there is half the fun: north from the narrows through a weedy channel past a beaver house, a sharp right turn through a boulder field, then high cliffs around the deepest water in Kilburn.
Best time
Spring, when water levels are up. Take the boulder field slowly.
Carry-in lakes
These take more effort: a walk on a trail with your gear in hand. The reward is a small lake with very few lines in it.
Kilburn · top of the West Arm
330 ft
Trail · boat waiting
378
Acres
~200 ft
Deepest
26 min
8.0 mi to the landing
At the north end of Kilburn’s West Arm, water flows in by creek from Middle and Upper Kilburn Lakes. An easy 330-foot portage takes you into Middle Kilburn, which has lake trout, northern pike and walleye.
We’ve kept a 16-foot boat and motor on the lake for guests, so ask us before you go and we’ll make sure it’s ready.
On the way home
Stop past the second narrows for a West Arm sunset.
Southwest of camp
½ mi
Trail · boat waiting
320
Acres
208 ft
Deep
9 min
3.4 mi to the landing
The Kurt Lake portage is moderate: about half a mile, and the first 400 feet are uphill through soggy ground. Once you’re over the hill it’s easy walking to the shore.
A 14-foot boat is cached at the end of the trail, and you can take a small motor from camp. Kurt is deep, 208 feet at its deepest, and lake trout and pike are both plentiful.
Try
The first point on the west side as you leave the small bay, and the lake side of the two reefs.
East of camp · trail closed for now
1–1½ hr
Hike and paddle
2,550
Acres
210+ ft
Deepest
7 min
2.7 mi to the landing
Pineneedle Lake lies about 4 miles east of the lodge. Getting there is a tough hike and paddle, but it’s worth the trek: a big, deep lake with lake trout, northern pike and a few walleye.
Long ago people camped high on a rock plateau above the lake, and Pineneedle is the site of several pictographs: ancient paintings on the rock.
Trail closed for now
The Pineneedle trail is temporarily closed. Ask us at the dock about it before you plan the trip.
North end of Sydney
~1,000 ft
Sidious trail · boat waiting
528
Acres in Sidious
208 ft
Deepest in Sidious
23 min
8.7 mi to the Sidious landing
Two small lakes sit just off the north end of Sydney, both part of the Sydney Lake watershed. Sidious Lake is reached from Sidious Creek at the back of Tranquility Bay: about a 1,000-foot trail with a boat waiting. It has walleye, lake trout and northern pike.
Jeb Lake, about 220 acres with walleye and pike, is close by, but its trail is temporarily closed. Ask us at the dock for directions and what’s been biting.
Best time
May and June. Black bears often work the creeks while fish spawn.
Back channels and creeks lead off the main lakes.
Portage day tips
A little planning makes a portage day easy. Here’s what we tell our guests.
Before you go
Leave your plan at the dock
Let us know which lake you’re heading to and when you plan to be back. We’ll mark the landing and trail on your map, and check that any boat on the far side is ready.
Check in when you get back, too.
Water levels
Boot Lake, Leano Falls, Trout Bay
Some routes depend on the water. In high-water years you can run up creeks that are too shallow in a dry summer. We’ll tell you what’s passable that week.
If in doubt, go slow, or get out and walk it.
Your gear
One or two rods, one small box
Everything you take, you carry. Bring a rod or two each, a small box of lures, your lunch, water and rain gear. Leave the rest in the boat.
A small backpack beats a tackle bag on a trail.
On the trail
Mud, roots and rock
Trails can be wet, rocky and steep in spots, like the uphill start to Kurt Lake. Waterproof boots and long pants make the walk much more pleasant.
Bring bug spray in June.
Safety
Every trip, every person
Wear your life jacket in the boat, on the main lake and on the portage lake. Pack a flashlight and a lighter in case a sunny afternoon turns into a late evening.
Newer iPhones can send satellite SOS texts from the lake.
Wildlife
Moose, bears and eagles
Creeks are wildlife highways. Moose come down to feed in the evening at places like the Boot Lake creek and the Bottle Bay entrance, and black bears visit the falls in May when fish are spawning. Give them room and enjoy the show.
Keep food packed away on shore.
Shore lunch
Take your cabin’s kit along
Every cabin has a shore lunch kit, and a rock by a falls makes a fine place to use it. Keep a couple of eaters, cook them fresh, and pack out everything you bring in.
Leave every spot cleaner than you found it.
Rules
Sydney Lake area regulations
The portage lakes are part of the Sydney Lake watershed and fall under the same area regulations as Sydney and Kilburn. Big fish go back alive here too. Rules change, so check the current Ontario regulations before your trip.
See our licences and limits page.
What to bring
✓Your waterproof lake map, marked at the dock with the landing and trail
✓Life jackets for everyone, in both boats
✓Waterproof boots, long pants and rain gear
✓Bug spray, sunscreen and polarized sunglasses
✓Lunch and plenty of drinking water in a small backpack
✓One or two rods each and a small box of jigs, spinners and spoons
✓Pliers and a hook cutter for quick releases
✓A flashlight, a lighter and a charged phone
Ask about the boats
We’ve kept boats on some portage lakes, like a 16-foot boat on Middle Kilburn and a 14-foot boat at the end of the Kurt Lake trail. Check with us before you go: we’ll tell you what’s in place this season and which motor to take.
No boat on the lake? Some spots, like Rowdy Lake below the falls, fish well from shore.
Full packing & tackle list →What you’ll catch
Spring favourite
Boot · Rowdy · Middle Kilburn
Boot Lake’s dark, shallow water makes it a spring walleye hot spot, and the falls below Sydney pull walleye into Rowdy Lake through the summer. Middle Kilburn has walleye too.
Try: 1/8–3/8 oz jigs with a minnow or twister tail.
Almost everywhere
Kurt · Boot · Trout Bay’s back lake
Pike are plentiful in Kurt Lake and the little lake off Trout Bay, and Boot Lake has some big ones. At the Boot Lake falls you can cast one way for walleye and the other for pike.
Try: spoons and spinners along weed edges and creek mouths.
Cold, deep lakes
Kurt · Middle Kilburn
Kurt Lake is 208 feet deep, and its lake trout hold off the first point on the west side and the lake side of the two reefs. Middle Kilburn has lake trout as well.
Try: spring and fall, when lake trout come shallower.
A bonus
Rowdy Lake
Smallmouth bass turn up below Sydney Falls in Rowdy Lake. A guest landed an 18-inch smallmouth there in 2025.
Try: small jigs and crankbaits around the rocks.
Fish them, then let them go
A small lake can be fished down fast. That’s why we treat the portage lakes the same way we’ve treated Sydney and Kilburn since 1987: keep a couple for lunch if you like, and put the big ones back alive.
Use single hooks with the barbs pinched, keep fish in the water while you unhook them, and hold them level for a quick photo. If a hook is swallowed, cut the line. A fish that’s slow to swim off can be held by the tail, nose down a little, until it kicks away.
The portage lakes fall under the same Sydney Lake area regulations as the main lakes. Rules change, so check the current Ontario regulations before your trip.
Licences & limits →
Old routes
First Nations people lived and travelled here for hundreds, maybe thousands, of years. In the late 1800s and early 1900s families camped above the falls at Rowdy Lake to fish and hunt, and there was a campsite high on a rock plateau above Pineneedle Lake, where pictographs still mark the rock. The Hudson’s Bay Company kept a fur trading post on the Sturgeon River too; there’s still a clearing where it stood.
Why these lakes grow big fish →Explore more: Sydney Lake · Kilburn Lake · Walleye · Northern pike · Lake trout · Woodland Caribou Park
