Fishing at Lac Golden, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Quebec

• Overview

  The Abitibi-Témiscamingue end of Quebec holds Lac Golden. Height above sea level is 420 metres. This is a pocket water of some 5 hectares, and every part of it is reachable from the bank. On size it sits at the modest end of our Abitibi-Témiscamingue list. Leblanc is the closest place, 114 km off. Gatineau sits 271 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. No boundary runs near, so the local rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Lac Golden

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. 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. Survey and observation records for Abitibi-Témiscamingue include northern pike, yellow perch, walleye and white sucker. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Read Lac Golden for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The warm month here averages 16°C; the cold one sits at -18°C. Ice holds for a long stretch, so the open weeks matter more here than further south. Hard cover is dependable here; it goes around early May. The season between ice runs from about early May to mid November. Look to early summer and the first cool weeks of autumn. Plan any trip to Lac Golden around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  No public source sets out the position on this bank. The map shows no ramp or car park nearby, so this is a walk-in water. Pike mean a wire trace, no exceptions; big spoons and jerkbaits do the searching. Look for a notice board at the entrance. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. Should this one be busy, Lac Rule is 0.6 km off. Check the position at Lac Golden before loading the car.