Lac des Retraitants in Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  In Quebec, Lac des Retraitants falls inside Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean. The setting is taiga. With some 21 hectares of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. The full circuit measures close to 3.9 km on foot. Ground here is low by Quebec standards. The town to know is Dolbeau-Mistassini, 46 km out. Saguenay sits 130 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Lac des Retraitants

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Across Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean, recorded fish include northern pike, Atlantic salmon, lake whitefish and fallfish. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. Treat Lac des Retraitants as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 17°C and January reads -19°C. Winter runs most of the calendar, and everything worth doing happens in the gap. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around early May. Climate figures give an open season running early May to mid November. The open run goes from the thaw to the freeze, and April through October covers most of it. Plan any trip to Lac des Retraitants around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Nothing is mapped in the way of a ramp or car park within a short radius. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. If the gate is shut, Lac de l'Epinoche at 1.5 km is the nearest alternative. The position on Lac des Retraitants is worth confirming on the day.