Fishing at Lac du Garde-Chasse, Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec

• Overview

  Lac du Garde-Chasse is one of the Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean listings for Quebec. Height above sea level is 382 metres. It covers about 9 hectares, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. For a base, Labrecque sits 62 km out. The nearest city of size is Saguenay, 90 km away. The nearest boundary is well away, so one set of rules covers the water.

• Where to Fish on Lac du Garde-Chasse

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Reported across Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean: 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 du Garde-Chasse in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Between January at about -19°C and July at about 16°C, the water has a wide range to work through. This is a two-season water: locked, then wide open. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from early May. Break-up sits around early May on average, with the water closing again about mid November. May into June fishes hardest, and September gives a second good stretch before the lid returns. On Lac du Garde-Chasse the same rules apply, with local timing.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public sources are silent on who controls the bank. The map shows no ramp or car park nearby, so this is a walk-in water. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. Bank access can be seasonal on ground like this. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. The nearest alternative is Lac Orignal, 1.2 km out. Rules at Lac du Garde-Chasse are worth checking on the day.