Lac des Mainates Fishing Guide, Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec

• Overview

  Quebec holds Lac des Mainates, in Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean. The water sits 410 metres up. At about 15 hectares, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. The full circuit measures close to 2.8 km on foot. Normandin sits 86 km from here and is the nearest stop. Albanel is 91 km and Leblanc 96 km. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Lac des Mainates

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Public occurrence data for Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean names northern pike, Atlantic salmon, lake whitefish and fallfish. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Work Lac des Mainates in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between -18°C in January and 16°C in July. Winter runs most of the calendar, and everything worth doing happens in the gap. The lid arrives early and lasts until roughly early May. On the long-run averages the water opens up around early May and starts locking again about mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. It holds true on Lac des Mainates more years than not.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Mapping is blank for access, so scout the approach before committing the car. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. Season dates differ by species, so read the table. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. Should this one be busy, Lac Routot is 1 km off. Signs at Lac des Mainates carry more weight than any list.