Lac Ernest Fishing in Laurentides, Quebec

• Overview

  You will find Lac Ernest in Laurentides, Quebec. Elevation runs to 235 metres. Surface area runs to roughly 1.15 sq km, so plan for one area rather than the whole. Some 11 km of bank gives room to move when the wind turns. Few waters listed in Laurentides are bigger. The town to know is Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel, 21 km out. It is 84 km to Orléans, the nearest city. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Lac Ernest

  Nothing in our records gives a depth for this one. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Reported across Laurentides: pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, brook trout and rock bass. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. The near bank of Lac Ernest is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 18°C and January near -14°C. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near late April. The open-water window runs from around late April to about late November in an average year. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. That is the shape of the year on Lac Ernest.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. There is camping recorded roughly 1.1 km off. There are toilets mapped about 1.1 km away. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Check whether a boat is allowed before you tow one. Check whether bait restrictions apply before you buy any. Failing this one, try Lac Lelat, 0.8 km away. For Lac Ernest in particular, ask before you travel.