Lac Desmarais, Quebec: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  You will find Lac Desmarais in Estrie, Quebec. The water sits 275 metres up. It runs to roughly 25 hectares — big enough to hold fish away from the bank, small enough to learn. Shoreline comes to about 4.2 km, small enough to learn in a day. Windsor lies 15 km from the water. Further out sit Rock Forest (15 km) and Valcourt (16 km). One jurisdiction covers this water end to end.

• Where to Fish on Lac Desmarais

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Estrie records list rainbow trout, white sucker and pumpkinseed among the fish reported. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. Treat Lac Desmarais as a water to read rather than to cover.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about -11°C in January to roughly 19°C in July. Fishing here follows the temperature more than the calendar. Winter locks it down, and mid April brings it back. On average, mid April opens the water and early December closes it again. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. Lac Desmarais runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  We hold no note on access for this one. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. The closest car park is 840 m away, so pack accordingly. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Ask in the nearest town if you are unsure. Fishing rules and camping rules are set separately here. Petit lac Brompton at 1.7 km is the sensible second choice. Check the position at Lac Desmarais before loading the car.