Lac aux Pierres in Mauricie: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Within Mauricie, Quebec, you have Lac aux Pierres. The setting is pine and birch on every side. The water covers some 20 hectares, so pick a bank rather than trying to cover it all. The edge runs 2.2 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. Start from La Tuque, 25 km down the road. The big place round here is Trois-Rivières, 110 km distant. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on Lac aux Pierres

  Open data we checked carries no depth for this water. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Open biodiversity records for Mauricie list northern pike, brook trout, walleye and yellow perch. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. Treat Lac aux Pierres as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The seasonal spread runs -15°C to 18°C. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around late April. Break-up near late April, freeze-up near late November: that is the shape of an average year. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Lac aux Pierres.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. If the gate is shut, Lac Maluron at 1.3 km is the nearest alternative. For Lac aux Pierres in particular, ask before you travel.