Lac Catto in Abitibi-Témiscamingue: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  This water sits in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Quebec. Elevation runs to 414 metres. 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. Supplies mean a trip to Leblanc, 108 km off. Gatineau sits 269 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Lac Catto

  The records we hold are silent on depth, so plan to find it yourself. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Reported across Abitibi-Témiscamingue: northern pike, yellow perch, walleye and white sucker. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Lac Catto fishes better once you know its edges.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -18°C and July at about 16°C, the water has a wide range to work through. Cold dominates the year and the fishing works around it. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from early May. Open water usually runs from early May until about mid November. Just after the ice goes and just before it returns, the fishing lifts. The season on Lac Catto follows the weather closely.

• 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 recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. For the pike, wire up and throw larger lures along the weed edges. Local rules can differ across the county line, so check where you stand. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. For a change of water, Lac Dejordy is 1.1 km distant. Nothing here settles the position at Lac Catto for certain.