Lac Jocelyne in Laurentides: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Look for Lac Jocelyne in the Laurentides part of Quebec. Beyond the shoreline you have pine and birch. Surface area runs to about 2 hectares — small enough to read in one session. On size it sits at the modest end of our Laurentides list. Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel at 24 km is the nearest place to stop. Then Ripon, 39 km, and La Minerve, 40 km. This one is safely inside the county line.

• Where to Fish on Lac Jocelyne

  We hold no survey for this water; read the slope of the shoreline instead. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Species logged across Laurentides include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, brook trout and rock bass. The county figures include rivers and lakes alike. Lac Jocelyne repays a walk before the first cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give July about 18°C and January about -14°C. A solid cap is the normal state through winter. Expect a solid lid for months and a thaw around late April. Ice usually gives way near late April, and forms again about late November. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. Lac Jocelyne fishes to that pattern most years.

• Tackle & Baits

  We have no record of the rules that apply on this bank. Nothing is listed nearby for parking or launching a boat. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Rules for this water may differ from the county norm. Where parking is tight, arriving early solves most problems. Petit lac MacMallan sits 0.5 km off and takes the overflow. Where Lac Jocelyne is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.