Lac des Jesuites in Laurentides: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Set in Laurentides, Quebec, this is Lac des Jesuites. Elevation runs to 403 metres. Around 11 hectares of surface means several distinct areas to work. The edge runs 1.9 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. Start from Rivière-Rouge, 28 km down the road. Saint-Louis-de-Terrebonne sits 126 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Lac des Jesuites

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Public occurrence data for Laurentides names pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, brook trout and rock bass. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Lac des Jesuites gives up more to patience than to distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages here run 18°C at the top of summer and -15°C at the bottom of winter. Winter shuts the surface down for months. Hard water holds through the cold months, breaking up near late April. The lid tends to go about late April and return around late November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. It holds true on Lac des Jesuites more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. No car park, ramp or path is recorded within easy reach of the shore. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. Lac Grasmere at 1.5 km is the sensible second choice. The position on Lac des Jesuites is worth confirming on the day.