Grand lac Rond Fishing near Saint-Raphaël, Quebec

• Overview

  In Quebec, Grand lac Rond falls inside Outaouais. It sits in rolling bush country. This is sizeable water at about 5.72 sq km, and a boat opens up most of it. The outline measures near 26 km, so a boat opens up water the bank never reaches. On our Outaouais list it sits near the top for size. Some 9.9 km away sits Saint-Raphaël, the nearest settlement. It is 87 km to Gatineau, the nearest city. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on Grand lac Rond

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. This is a lake, so the margins and the first drop matter most. Open biodiversity records for Outaouais list pumpkinseed, yellow perch, smallmouth bass, rainbow smelt and Iowa darter. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. Anyone new to Grand lac Rond should walk it once before setting up.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 19°C; by January the average is down near -13°C. Cold locks it up for a good stretch each year. Break-up comes around late April, and the run that follows is short and strong. The water is typically free of ice between late April and late November. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. That is the shape of the year on Grand lac Rond.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Nothing built is recorded close to the bank here. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. For a change of water, Petit lac Rond is 2.8 km distant. Treat Grand lac Rond as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.