Lac Fairburn Fishing near Saint-Raphaël, Quebec

• Overview

  This water sits in Outaouais, Quebec. The water sits 231 metres up. Roughly 26 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. Roughly 3.2 km of bank means you can walk to a fresh area when one goes quiet. Nearest place of any size is Saint-Raphaël, 21 km away. The nearest city of size is Gatineau, 81 km away. The nearest edge is a long way off, so local rules apply throughout.

• Where to Fish on Lac Fairburn

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. A soft bed grows weed late into autumn, which keeps fish shallow. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Outaouais records list pumpkinseed, yellow perch, smallmouth bass and rainbow smelt among the fish reported. Take it as the county picture rather than a promise for this water. Take Lac Fairburn a stretch at a time.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 19°C; by January the average is down near -14°C. A full turn of seasons, with the strongest sport on either side of summer. 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. From the thaw to midsummer the fishing improves week by week. Plan around that when you fish Lac Fairburn.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Parking space is the usual limit rather than the bank itself. Some water is controlled locally without a sign saying so. Failing this one, try Lac du Moulin, 1.2 km away. What applies at Lac Fairburn may have changed since it was mapped.