Sixteen Mile Creek – Lions Valley Park, Oakville

About this water

An Oakville valley creek that holds resident smallmouth and browns in summer and receives salmon and steelhead runs from Lake Ontario.

Wadeable creek with pools and riffles cut through a shale valley. Low and clear in summer, high and stained after rain. 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).

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 Sixteen Mile Creek – Lions Valley Park, Oakville, 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: Chinook Salmon, Carp. 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.
• Move often and fish the head of each pool — the creek is small and fish spook fast in low, clear water.
• Access: Free lot at Lions Valley Park with trail access down to the creek.

Gear setup

Setup:

Light spinning or float fishing

Rod:

7' light-medium spinning or 10' float rod

Reel:

Size 2500 spinning reel

Line:

8 lb main line with 6 lb fluorocarbon leader

Best bait:

Worms, Roe bags (fall/spring)

Best lures:

Small inline spinners, Small spoons, Soft plastic minnow