Etang Otter in Abitibi-Témiscamingue: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  You will find Etang Otter in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Quebec. The surface lies 334 metres up. At about 24 hectares, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. The bank runs about 3.2 km all the way round, so one visit can cover most of it. Some 39 km away sits Mattawa, the nearest settlement. Notre-Dame-du-Lac follows at 59 km, then Témiscaming at 61 km. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Etang Otter

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. County-wide records name northern pike, yellow perch, walleye and white sucker. Species recorded across the county may be limited to a few waters. The near bank of Etang Otter is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -14°C and July at about 18°C, the water has a wide range to work through. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Winter locks it down, and late April brings it back. From about late April to around late November, expect open water on the long-run figures. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. The season on Etang Otter follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. No launch point is recorded nearby, so this is a bank water unless you carry a boat in. For the pike, wire up and throw larger lures along the weed edges. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. Should this one be busy, Lac Seneca is 1.9 km off. Nothing here settles the position at Etang Otter for certain.