Fishing at Lac Laurent, Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec

• Overview

  Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, is where Lac Laurent sits. Height above sea level is 551 metres. A splashy cast here empties the swim; a quiet one owns it. Most waters listed here for Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean are larger. For a base, Saint-Honoré sits 86 km out. Saguenay sits 99 km out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. It lies deep inside the county rather than near an edge.

• Where to Fish on Lac Laurent

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. The shallow end warms first and pulls fish in ahead of the rest. Open biodiversity records for Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean list northern pike, Atlantic salmon, lake whitefish and fallfish. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Read Lac Laurent for ten minutes before the first cast goes out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Temperature averages peak at 15°C in July and bottom out at -19°C in January. This is a two-season water: locked, then wide open. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around mid May. Average temperatures cross freezing around mid May in spring and again near mid November in autumn. The first weeks of open water and the last are the ones to plan for. At Lac Laurent the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access is not recorded for this water. Nothing in the way of made access shows up nearby: no ramp, no car park, no path. For the pike, wire up and throw larger lures along the weed edges. Look for a notice board at the entrance. A polite question at the farm gate opens more banks than anything else. For a change of water, Lac Lessard is 1.5 km distant. Treat access at Lac Laurent as something to verify.