Yellowknife Sportfishing Ice Fishing Derby

Great Slave Lake is one of the deepest lakes on the planet and the largest lake in the Northwest Territories, and in January its surface freezes to depths that support snowmobiles, heated shelters, and the kind of ice fishing that draws anglers from across Canada’s north. The Yellowknife Sportfishing Ice Fishing Derby, held each winter out of Yellowknife, NWT, is organized by Yellowknife Sportfishing Adventures, the territory’s premier guided fishing outfitter, which has operated on Great Slave Lake since 2017 under the direction of head guide Ryan Gregory. The derby opens access to multiple NWT lakes across the event period, letting participants choose their water and their target species rather than confining them to a single, crowded venue.

What the Water Holds

Great Slave Lake is a genuinely uncommon fishery. The target species in the derby include trophy lake trout, northern pike, inconnu, Arctic grayling, and walleye, the same lineup that draws serious sport fishers from southern Canada for guided summer expeditions. In winter, through ice that can reach five feet in thickness, these fish are accessible to anyone willing to dress appropriately and follow a guide’s instruction. Lake trout weighing well over 20 pounds are not exceptional catches here. Northern pike in Great Slave can exceed 40 inches. The inconnu, a species almost unknown in the southern provinces, grows large enough in this lake to be legitimately startling when it surfaces through a hole in the ice.

Good to Know: Yellowknife Sportfishing Adventures provides fully equipped heated shelters, high-end gear, and professional guiding services for ice fishing sessions. If you are traveling to the derby without your own equipment, contact the outfitter in advance to confirm package availability for derby participants. A 2026 NWT Sport Fishing License is required and can be purchased on-site or through the GNWT licensing system prior to arrival.

Who This Trip Is For

Families with children as young as three have taken guided ice fishing sessions with this outfitter to strong results, as the heated shelters eliminate the exposure that makes unguided winter fishing impractical for young children. Experienced anglers traveling without families will find the trophy lake trout fishery alone justifies the flight to Yellowknife. For couples looking for a legitimately remote and cinematic winter experience, sitting inside a heated tent watching the aurora australis build overhead while a rod tip quivers over a dark hole in Great Slave Lake ice is not a trip that competes with anything else available at this latitude in January.

Yellowknife Itself

Yellowknife sits on the northern shore of Great Slave Lake, roughly 450 kilometres south of the Arctic Circle. The city of approximately 20,000 is the territorial capital and the most accessible point of entry for NWT wilderness experiences. The Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre, located near the waterfront, is one of the strongest regional history museums in northern Canada and earns a full morning from any family that engages with its Indigenous culture exhibits and territorial natural history collections. Old Town, the original settlement perched on the rocky shoreline above the lake, remains a characterful neighborhood of painted houses, floating homes, and lake views worth a slow afternoon walk. For travelers making this a full winter trip, Lake.com lists northern Canada vacation rental options that serve as a base for multiple-day NWT fishing and aurora experiences.

Weather Reality: Yellowknife in January is legitimately Arctic in character. Average high temperatures fall near minus 23 degrees Celsius. Dress in a full rated cold-weather system, not layered casual winter clothing. The outfitter’s heated shelters on the ice mitigate this significantly, but the walk from the vehicle to the shelter requires proper Arctic gear.