Lac Desjardins Fishing in Laurentides, Quebec

• Overview

  In Quebec, Lac Desjardins falls inside Laurentides. It lies 163 metres above sea level. This is a pocket water of some 5 hectares, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. It is low-lying compared with other Quebec water we list. Some 6.7 km away sits Saint-Canut, the nearest settlement. Saint-Louis-de-Terrebonne sits 25 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No boundary runs near, so the local rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Lac Desjardins

  Depth is not on record here, which means reading the ground instead. 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. Across Laurentides, recorded fish include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass and yellow perch. The county list is broader than any single water. Fish Lac Desjardins to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Climate normals give 19°C for July and -12°C for January. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from late April. The open-water window runs from around late April to about early December in an average year. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. The season on Lac Desjardins follows the weather closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. Parking sits 1.4 km out, which makes for a walk with tackle. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Failing this one, try Lac Laniel, 1.6 km away. Nothing here settles the position at Lac Desjardins for certain.