Lac des Essais in Nord-du-Québec: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Lac des Essais is set in Nord-du-Québec, Quebec. The surroundings are northern bush. At some 2.36 sq km it is far too large to cover on foot in a day. At about 10 km of edge, most people work one arm at a time. Some 251 km away sits Kuujjuaq, the nearest settlement. It is 1264 km to Saguenay, the nearest city. The county line is nowhere near, so one local authority covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Lac des Essais

  Depth went unrecorded, which puts the reading back on you. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Public occurrence data for Nord-du-Québec names Arctic charr, brook trout, lake trout and lake whitefish. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. On Lac des Essais the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 9°C; the cold one sits at -22°C. Winter owns most of the year at this latitude. After late June the shallows warm and the fish move up. Average temperatures cross freezing around late June in spring and again near early October in autumn. Spring is short and heavy here; autumn is longer and steadier. On Lac des Essais the same rules apply, with local timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Should this one be busy, Lac Malchelosse is 17 km off. Where Lac des Essais is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.