Lac Fret in Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  In Quebec, Lac Fret belongs to Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean. The surroundings are northern bush. It covers about 2 hectares, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. It is a small entry by Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean standards. Supplies mean a trip to Pont Rouge, 51 km off. It is 90 km to Saguenay, the nearest city. It sits well inside its county, with no border complications.

• Where to Fish on Lac Fret

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Reported across Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean: northern pike, Atlantic salmon and lake whitefish. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. The near bank of Lac Fret is often the one people ignore.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The range across the year is -19°C to 16°C. Cold dominates the calendar on water this far north. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from early May. Open water usually runs from early May until about mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Plan around that when you fish Lac Fret.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. For a change of water, Lac de la Marmite is 0.5 km distant. Nothing on Lac Fret should be assumed from this page alone.