Lac Forbell in Laurentides: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Lac Forbell belongs to Laurentides, Quebec. The water sits 441 metres up. It covers about 3 hectares, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. It is a small entry by Laurentides standards. Ferme-Neuve sits 98 km from here and is the nearest stop. Gatineau sits 231 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Lac Forbell

  There is no recorded depth, so work from what you can see. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. Records held for Laurentides cover pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch and brook trout. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. Lac Forbell gives up its fish to patience rather than distance.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July is the warm end of the year here, averaging about 16°C, while January sits near -17°C. Cold dominates the year and the fishing works around it. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about early May. Open water usually runs from early May until about mid November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. At Lac Forbell the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. No made access appears within a short radius, so plan to park on a verge and walk. Largemouth respond to soft plastics tight to cover; go weedless where the growth is heavy. Provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. The nearest alternative is Lac Duncan, 0.7 km out. Treat access at Lac Forbell as something to verify.