Lac Cawcot, Quebec: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  In Quebec, Lac Cawcot falls inside Mauricie. It stands 446 metres above sea level. At 2.07 sq km this is proper open water rather than a pond. With 19 km or so of shoreline, boat anglers cover ground the bank cannot. It is among the larger waters listed here for Mauricie. Nearest town is Chapais, 77 km off. Saguenay sits 279 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Lac Cawcot

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Survey and observation records for Mauricie include northern pike, brook trout and walleye. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Lac Cawcot fishes better once you know its edges.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July near 16°C and January near -19°C on the long-run figures. Open water arrives late and leaves early, which concentrates the fishing. Ice-out usually falls in early May, and the weeks after it fish hardest. Break-up sits around early May on average, with the water closing again about mid November. Fish feed hardest at the start and the close of the open season. Lac Cawcot fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Failing this one, try Lac Roy, 2.7 km away. Signs at Lac Cawcot carry more weight than any list.