Fishing at Lac de la Boutonniere, Lanaudière, Quebec

• Overview

  The Lanaudière end of Quebec holds Lac de la Boutonniere. Everything around it is northern bush. Manawan sits 13 km from the bank. Saint-Michel-des-Saints is 58 km and Saint-Donat-de-Montcalm 91 km. If this one is busy: Lac du Bouton at 1.5 km, 1.9 km away is Petit lac Natowe, Lac Chaise at 2.6 km, 2.7 km away is Lac Sleeve and Lac du Fauteuil at 3.1 km. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Lac de la Boutonniere

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Species logged across Lanaudière include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass and yellow perch. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. Work Lac de la Boutonniere in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 17°C on average, January about -16°C. This far north the hard season runs and runs. Once it clears, about early May, the fishing comes on quickly. Break-up sits around early May on average, with the water closing again about mid November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. Anyone fishing Lac de la Boutonniere regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. No made access appears within a short radius, so plan to park on a verge and walk. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. If the gate is shut, Lac du Bouton at 1.5 km is the nearest alternative. Where Lac de la Boutonniere is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.