Lac Lemieux Fishing near Ripon, Quebec

• Overview

  In Quebec, Lac Lemieux belongs to Outaouais. It sits at 331 metres above sea level. Surface area is around 16 hectares, which gives you real water without needing a boat. There is roughly 1.8 km of shoreline here, which is a short walk end to end. The town to know is Ripon, 25 km out. Further out sit Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel (29 km) and Saint-André-Avellin (31 km). No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Lac Lemieux

  We hold no depth figure for this one. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Open biodiversity records for Outaouais list pumpkinseed, yellow perch, smallmouth bass, rainbow smelt and Iowa darter. Those are county-wide records, so not every one of them will be in this water. Work Lac Lemieux in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 18°C and January near -14°C. Winter shuts things down for a spell, then spring reopens them fast. Count the season from break-up, usually late April. The season between ice runs from about late April to late November. Right after break-up, and again as the nights sharpen, is when to go. It sets the rhythm of the year at Lac Lemieux.

• Tackle & Baits

  The rules here are undocumented as far as public sources go. Records list it as a natural water body rather than an impoundment. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Where the road in crosses private land, ask first. Rules for boats are stricter than rules for the bank in many places. If the gate is shut, Lac Campeau at 0.5 km is the nearest alternative. Nothing here settles the position at Lac Lemieux for certain.