Lac de la Source in Lanaudière: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  The Lanaudière entry here is Lac de la Source, in Quebec. Spruce and muskeg runs right down to the water. This is a pocket water of some 8 hectares, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. 18 km away sits Manawan, the nearest town. Saint-Louis-de-Terrebonne sits 157 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 de la Source

  We hold no depth figure for this one. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Records held for Lanaudière cover pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch and rock bass. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. At Lac de la Source the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 17°C and January about -16°C. The year here is short and sharp: a long lid, then a burst of open water. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough early May. In an average year the thaw lands around early May and the freeze near mid November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Lac de la Source runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. For a change of water, Lac de la Pitoune is 1.6 km distant. Nothing here settles the position at Lac de la Source for certain.