Lac Jensen, Quebec: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Mauricie, Quebec, is where Lac Jensen sits. The surface lies 429 metres up. It covers about 6 hectares, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. Nearest town is Weymontachie, 39 km off. The big place round here is Trois-Rivières, 177 km distant. Also within reach: Lac Fallon 0.8 km off, Lac Soudan within 1.4 km, Lac Lebron 2 km off, Lac Cicip within 3.1 km and Lac des Panicauts 4.2 km off. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on Lac Jensen

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Records held for Mauricie cover northern pike, brook trout and walleye. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. Lac Jensen responds to conditions more than to tactics.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 17°C, with January the cold end at about -16°C. The freeze holds for the better part of the year. Ice fishing carries the winter, and the water opens about early May. In an average year the thaw lands around early May and the freeze near mid November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. That is the shape of the year on Lac Jensen.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. Nothing in the way of made access shows up nearby: no ramp, no car park, no path. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Close seasons apply to some species and not others. Failing this one, try Lac Fallon, 0.8 km away. The position on Lac Jensen is worth confirming on the day.