Lac du Relais in Mauricie: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  You will find Lac du Relais in Mauricie, Quebec. The surface lies 493 metres up. It measures about 50 hectares, which is a comfortable size for bank fishing. Shoreline comes to about 4.3 km, small enough to learn in a day. Size puts it in the front rank of our Mauricie list. Weymontachie at 36 km is the nearest place to stop. Then Leblanc, 65 km, and Saint-Félicien, 94 km. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Lac du Relais

  Depth is unknown to us, and the shoreline is the better guide. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Mauricie records list northern pike, brook trout and walleye among the fish reported. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. On Lac du Relais a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 16°C and January about -17°C. Long winters and short summers set the pattern. The open season starts with the thaw, near enough early May. Averages suggest open water from about early May through to roughly mid November. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. On Lac du Relais that shapes the whole year.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Take the rules with you rather than trusting memory. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Lac des Nymphes at 1.3 km is the sensible second choice. Where Lac du Relais is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.