Lac du Chicot Fishing near Laurentides, Quebec

• Overview

  The Mauricie end of Quebec holds Lac du Chicot. It stands 374 metres above sea level. Around 16 hectares of surface means several distinct areas to work. The edge runs 2.0 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. Nearest place of any size is Laurentides, 16 km away. The nearest city of size is Trois-Rivières, 74 km away. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Lac du Chicot

  There is no published depth for this one, so start shallow and work out. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Species logged across Mauricie include northern pike, brook trout, walleye, yellow perch and white sucker. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. On Lac du Chicot the quiet end is the one worth the extra effort.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 18°C; the cold one sits at -15°C. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. Hard water holds through the cold months, breaking up near late April. Climate averages put the opening at about late April and the closing near late November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. That is the shape of the year on Lac du Chicot.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Nothing built is recorded close to the bank here. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. Lac Perdu at 1 km is the sensible second choice. Treat Lac du Chicot as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.