Fishing at Lac Chastellux, Nord-du-Québec, Quebec

• Overview

  Nord-du-Québec, Quebec, is where Lac Chastellux sits. Elevation runs to 576 metres. This is big water, about 14.36 sq km, and in a wind it behaves like a small sea. The perimeter is close to 72 km, and wind can be flat in one arm and rough in the next. On our Nord-du-Québec list it sits near the top for size. Some 178 km away sits Fermont, the nearest settlement. Saguenay is the closest city, 571 km away. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Lac Chastellux

  Nothing we hold settles how deep this runs. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Survey and observation records for Nord-du-Québec include Arctic charr, brook trout, lake trout, lake whitefish and cisco. The county list is broader than any single water. At Lac Chastellux the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 13°C and January reads -24°C. Winter runs most of the calendar, and everything worth doing happens in the gap. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from late May. The lid tends to go about late May and return around late October. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. That shapes the year on Lac Chastellux.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. For a change of water, Lac Viomenil is 7.7 km distant. Confirm before you fish Lac Chastellux.