Lac des Arbres in Lanaudière: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Lac des Arbres is a Lanaudière water, in Quebec. The bank is 569 metres above sea level. This is a pocket water of some 5 hectares, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. It is high ground by Quebec standards. For supplies, Saint-Donat-de-Montcalm is 13 km out. Mont-Tremblant is 36 km and Saint-Michel-des-Saints 37 km. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Lac des Arbres

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Fish documented in Lanaudière include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, rock bass and brook trout. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. At Lac des Arbres light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about -15°C in January to roughly 17°C in July. The freeze arrives properly here and holds. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from early May. Break-up near early May, freeze-up near mid November: that is the shape of an average year. Fishing peaks soon after break-up and again before the cold returns. It holds true on Lac des Arbres more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. This sits inside Parc de récréation du Mont-Tremblant, so read the reserve notices first. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. The nearest alternative is Lac du Porc-Epic, 1.2 km out. Ask locally about Lac des Arbres if anything is unclear.