Lac des Coutu Fishing near Normandin, Quebec

• Overview

  In Quebec, Lac des Coutu belongs to Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean. The surface lies 209 metres up. This is a pocket water of some 6 hectares, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. It is low-lying compared with other Quebec water we list. Start from Normandin, 17 km down the road. Further out sit Albanel (19 km) and Dolbeau-Mistassini (34 km). The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Lac des Coutu

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Open biodiversity records for Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean list northern pike, Atlantic salmon and lake whitefish. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. Anyone new to Lac des Coutu should walk it once before setting up.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 17°C and January about -19°C. The fishing year opens late and shuts early. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around early May. On the long-run averages the water opens up around early May and starts locking again about mid November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. It holds true on Lac des Coutu more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. There is no mapped parking or launch nearby, which keeps numbers down. For the pike, wire up and throw larger lures along the weed edges. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Should this one be busy, Lac Long is 2.8 km off. What applies at Lac des Coutu may have changed since it was mapped.