Ice fishing in Manitoba runs on the same Anglers' Guide as summer fishing, but only part of it matters once the lakes lock up. The seasons that stay open through the winter, the two-line rule, the shelter deadlines and the bait you can still use are what decide your trip. This guide pulls those pieces out of the 2026 guide, which governs the whole 2026-27 ice season. Licences, fees, barbless hooks, possession limits and zebra mussels are covered in the fishing licence and rules guide; this one starts where that one stops, at the edge of the ice.
What stays open through the winter
Seasons are set by fishing division, and the walleye season is the one to watch:
- Southern Division: walleye and sauger are open until April 4, 2027, then closed until May 8. On Lake Winnipeg the closure runs from April 6 to May 15. Lake trout reopen on November 1, after the fall spawning closure, so they are open from first ice.
- Northwest and North Central divisions: walleye and sauger are open until April 30, 2027, so late ice in the north stays fishable for walleye after the south has closed.
- Northeast Division: generally open all year, with a short list of rivers that close for walleye from April 6.
Lake sturgeon are catch-and-release only everywhere, and most other species have no closed season. The ice fishing by division pages have the full season tables.
Lines, holes and staying close
Through the ice you may use two lines, one more than in open water, each with no more than two hooks or lures, all of them barbless. The catch is distance: you must stay within 50 m of your lines. Tip-ups set across a bay while you sit in a shelter at the other end, or lines left down while you drive to the store, break that rule. A fresh hole skims over quickly and disappears under new snow, so mark the ones you leave behind with a branch or a mound of snow.
Ice fishing shelters
A shelter can stay on the ice unattended, as long as it carries your full name or your Customer Identification Number, and a phone number, in block letters at least 5 cm high on the outside. The CID is the number on your e-licensing account, and many anglers use it instead of their name.
Every shelter has to be off the ice by the removal date for its water:
- March 14, 2027 on the Red River;
- March 15 in Area B of the Southern Division (southwestern Manitoba);
- March 31 in the rest of the Southern Division;
- April 15 in the Northwest, North Central and Northeast divisions.
A Conservation Officer can order shelters off earlier if the ice turns unsafe, and leaving one out past the deadline carries a set fine of $348. Once it's off, the shelter has to be stored or disposed of away from the shore, on private property; dragging it into the bush on Crown land doesn't count. On lakes inside provincial parks, Manitoba Parks adds its own size, location and use standards, and park shelters may not be used for sleeping overnight. Open liquor, beer included, is prohibited in ice fishing shelters, as in boats and vehicles.
Stocked trout lakes: open all winter
The province stocks rainbow, brook, brown and tiger trout and splake in dozens of small lakes and ponds, many of them in Duck Mountain, the Porcupine Hills, the Whiteshell and the southwest. The Southern Division's stocked trout lakes, ponds and reservoirs are open all year, ice season included. A few rules to know before you drill:
- The combined limit for stocked trout is 3, only one of them over 45 cm and none over 60 cm, and several lakes set a limit of one or two, or release only, with artificial lures and flies.
- In Duck Mountain Provincial Park and the Porcupine Provincial Forest, every trout under 35 cm must be released, except in streams.
- Stocked trout creeks and rivers in the Southern Division are closed from November 1 to April 15. The Whiteshell River between West Hawk and Caddy lakes is one of them.
- No live bait fish on any stocked trout water.
The stocked trout waters of the Northwest and North Central divisions are also open all year. Each division page lists them.
Closures that start before breakup
Most spawning closures start in April or May, after the ice is gone in a normal year. A handful start in winter, and they are easy to miss:
- West Watjask Lake is closed from November 15 to June 15.
- Goose Bay on Rocky Lake, in the Northwest Division, is closed from November 1 to May 15.
- On Dauphin Lake, the inflowing tributaries and the parts of the lake within 1 km of their mouths close on March 1; the rest of the lake stays open through March and closes April 1.
- In the North Central Division, Fish Lake, Setting Creek and the part of Setting Lake within 2 km of the creek mouth close on March 15.
- Limestone Bay on Lake Winnipeg is closed all year.
Late-season anglers should also note the April 1 closures on many southern creeks and drains, and the Red River below Lockport, closed to all fishing from April 6.
Live bait: the last winter
This is the last ice season for live minnows in Manitoba. The 2026 guide announces that harvesting, possessing and using live bait fish and leeches will be prohibited province-wide from April 1, 2027. Until then:
- Live bait fish are banned in the three northern divisions, and in the Southern Division on stocked trout waters, in Whiteshell, Atikaki, South Atikaki and Turtle Mountain provincial parks, Duck Mountain park and forest, the Porcupine Provincial Forest and the Winnipeg River from Seven Sisters Dam to the Ontario border.
- Elsewhere in the south, minnows you buy come with a Live Bait Fish Transfer and Use Receipt that is valid for three days. Bait you catch yourself must be killed before you take it away from that water.
- Frozen or preserved bait fish are allowed in every division, so a bag of frozen shiners works on a northern lake where live ones are banned.
- Leaving the shore of an Aquatic Invasive Species Control Zone, throw out all your bait, live or dead, whatever your receipt says.
Invasive species in winter
Zebra mussels and spiny water fleas survive in the water in your bucket and on wet gear. The province's ice-season checklist: before you go onto a lake, make sure your auger, ice scoop and gear are free of plants and mud and drain any water from bait containers on land; after you come off, remove plants and drain all water, though water that has frozen solid can stay. Gear last used on another lake must be completely dry or decontaminated before it goes into this one, and in winter, leaving it outside for three days at −10 °C or colder decontaminates it.
How thick is thick enough
The Lifesaving Society's Manitoba guidance, which Manitoba Public Insurance publishes, is for clear, solid ice:
- 10 cm to walk on it;
- 12 cm for one snowmobile or ATV;
- 20 to 30 cm for a car or small SUV;
- 30 to 38 cm for a pickup truck.
White, snow-covered or slushy ice is weaker. Thickness also changes over springs, river mouths and pressure ridges, ice that is safe in one spot can be dangerous a short distance away, and late-season ice weakens quickly as it warms, even where it still looks thick. Drill as you go, carry ice picks and a rope, and fish with a partner.
On the Red River, the province cuts and breaks the ice every late winter to reduce ice-jam flooding, on about 28 km of river between the Netley Marsh area and Selkirk. In recent years the work has run from about February 20 to March 15. Stay off the ice wherever notices are posted or you can see recent cutting, and get your shelter out of the work area before the machines arrive.
Fish for free on February 20 to 22, 2027
The winter Family Fishing Weekend is February 20 to 22, 2027. Anyone can fish without a licence anywhere in Manitoba except national parks; limits, seasons, barbless hooks and the shelter rules still apply. If you do hold an annual licence, it runs from May 1, 2026 to April 30, 2027, so it covers the whole ice season.
Getting there
Many lakes are reached by snowmobile or on a plowed cottage or forestry road, and some northern lakes only by winter road. The winter on Crown land guide covers snowmobile rules, ice roads and winter camping, and our parks in winter pages list the lakes near each park's winter trails.
Sources
Last reviewed: October 2026. Regulations change and the guide is a summary; always confirm with the official source before you go.