Lac Bourassa, Quebec: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Lac Bourassa falls in Mauricie, part of Quebec. The bank is 315 metres above sea level. Surface area is around 76 hectares, which gives you real water without needing a boat. Some 6.1 km of bank gives room to move when the wind turns. Size puts it in the front rank of our Mauricie list. Nearest place of any size is Saint-Élie-de-Caxton, 37 km away. Trois-Rivières is the closest city, 71 km away. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Lac Bourassa

  Our records hold no depth for this water. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. County-wide records name northern pike, brook trout and walleye. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. Lac Bourassa gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 18°C; the cold one sits at -15°C. Winter puts a hard lid on this one. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from late April. Average temperatures cross freezing around late April in spring and again near late November in autumn. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. The season on Lac Bourassa follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. Should this one be busy, Lac Allard is 1.2 km off. For Lac Bourassa, the notice at the access point is the final word.