Lac Francoys-Malherbe, Quebec: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Lac Francoys-Malherbe falls in Centre-du-Québec, part of Quebec. The water sits 70 metres up. Surface area runs to some 23.72 sq km, so a boat and a plan are both worth having. The shoreline runs to about 42 km, far more than one trip can cover. It ranks high for size among our Centre-du-Québec listings. For a base, Salluit sits 76 km out. Then Kinngait, 273 km, and Puvirnituq, 273 km. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Lac Francoys-Malherbe

  Depth is not on record here, so the bank has to tell you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Fish documented in Centre-du-Québec include brook trout, northern pike and lake chub. Read it as a county summary, not a water-by-water list. Fish Lac Francoys-Malherbe to its features, not to its size.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 10°C and January about -24°C. The ice season is long here and the open one short. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around mid June. Climate averages put the opening at about mid June and the closing near mid October. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Plan any trip to Lac Francoys-Malherbe around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  The paperwork position is blank for this one. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. Where access is informal, keep it that way by behaving. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Failing this one, try Lac Duquet, 16 km away. Check the current arrangement for Lac Francoys-Malherbe.