Fishing at Lac Earl, Mauricie, Quebec

• Overview

  Lac Earl is one of the Mauricie waters in Quebec. The water sits 413 metres up. Surface area runs to about 6 hectares — small enough to read in one session. For supplies, Weymontachie is 49 km out. Further out sit La Tuque (56 km) and Manawan (72 km). Others close at hand: Lac Typist 1.6 km off, Lac Iraq out at 2.3 km, Lac Hoover 2.5 km off, Lac Jonquille out at 2.5 km and Lac Petit 2.9 km off. There is no boundary nearby to worry about.

• Where to Fish on Lac Earl

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Mauricie records list northern pike, brook trout, walleye, yellow perch and white sucker among the fish reported. What holds for the county may not hold for this water. The near bank of Lac Earl is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between -16°C in January and 17°C in July. Open water is the exception rather than the rule here. Count on hard cover from midwinter, and open water from early May. Ice clears near early May and comes back about mid November in a typical year. Fishing peaks soon after break-up and again before the cold returns. Keep it in mind when planning a trip to Lac Earl.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Public mapping records no formal access here, so plan for a walk and soft ground. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Should this one be busy, Lac Typist is 1.6 km off. Check the position at Lac Earl before loading the car.