Lac Chantreux in Lanaudière: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  In Quebec, Lac Chantreux belongs to Lanaudière. It sits in mixed forest. At 6 hectares it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. By elevation it is in the upper part of our Quebec listings. Supplies mean a trip to Saint-Michel-des-Saints, 22 km off. After that come Saint-Donat-de-Montcalm at 29 km and Sainte-Béatrix at 40 km. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Lac Chantreux

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Species logged across Lanaudière include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, rock bass and brook trout. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. On Lac Chantreux the first feature you find is usually worth a session.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -15°C to 17°C. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from late April. In an average year the thaw lands around late April and the freeze near late November. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. Anyone fishing Lac Chantreux regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. Access points are not mapped for this water, which suits people who like quiet. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Lac Soumont sits 1 km off and takes the overflow. The position on Lac Chantreux is worth confirming on the day.