Pinery Provincial Park – Old Ausable Channel

About this water

A unique oxbow channel inside Pinery Provincial Park — ideal paddle-and-cast water and one of the most biodiverse fisheries in Ontario.

Calm, slow-moving former river channel with good clarity and weedy shallows. Over 50 warm-water species present. Pugnose shiner, lake chubsucker, and grass pickerel are protected — no take. FMZ 16.

FMZ 16 regulations — Southwestern Ontario & Lake Simcoe

The most southerly inland zone in the province. It includes all of southwestern Ontario, is predominantly made up of large river systems, and includes Lakes Simcoe and Couchiching. It has the largest urban population of any fisheries management zone. The Great Lakes themselves are separate zones (13, 14, 19 and 20).

• Lake Simcoe lake trout: Jan 1 – Sept 30; S-2/C-1 (one over 45 cm).
• Lake Simcoe whitefish: Dec 1 – Mar 15; S-2/C-1.
• Smallmouth bass: 4th Saturday in June – Nov 30; S-4/C-2.
• Rainbow trout (tributaries): Apr 1 – Sept 30 & 4th Sat Nov – Mar 31; check specific rivers.

Zone check: FMZ 16 confirmed from this water's coordinates against the official Ontario zone boundaries (reviewed 2026-08-12). The FMZ 16 boundary is only 1.77 km away, so confirm which zone your launch falls in.

Summary only — always confirm current seasons and limits on the Ontario MNRF FMZ 16 page before your trip.

Seasonal availability

Open-season windows for the species found at Pinery Provincial Park – Old Ausable Channel, taken from the FMZ 16 regulation summary. Green months are within a published open season — they are not a prediction of how well fish will bite.

No FMZ 16 season line published in our summary for: Pumpkinseed, Yellow Perch, Northern Pike, Catfish. Check the official page before keeping these species.

Summary only, and seasons change annually. Confirm dates on the Ontario MNRF FMZ 16 page before your trip.

Fishing tips

• Simcoe ice fishing is world-class — perch on shallow flats, lakers on deep rock piles.
• Grand River smallmouth respond to tube jigs in current seams.
• Rent a canoe at the park store and work the shaded weed edges. Know your protected species — several look-alikes here are no-take.
• Access: Pay-and-display day-use lots throughout the park; a vehicle permit is required at the gate.

Gear setup

Setup:

Light spinning from a canoe or kayak

Rod:

6'6" light spinning rod

Reel:

Size 2000 spinning reel

Line:

6–8 lb fluorocarbon

Best bait:

Worms, Small minnows

Best lures:

Small spinnerbait, Weightless soft plastic, Beetle Spin, Topwater popper