Lac Mancelle, Quebec: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  Lac Mancelle sits within Outaouais in Quebec. It stands 277 metres above sea level. It covers about 4 hectares, so this is small water you can walk round in under an hour. You are 35 km from Saint-Boniface. The big place round here is Gatineau, 150 km distant. Also on the doorstep: Lac Chabot 1.3 km away, Lac Jota roughly 1.4 km, Lac Ratafia 1.5 km away, Lac Corby roughly 1.7 km and Lac Jouee 1.9 km away. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Lac Mancelle

  Depth went unrecorded, which puts the reading back on you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Survey and observation records for Outaouais include pumpkinseed, yellow perch, smallmouth bass, rainbow smelt and Iowa darter. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. At Lac Mancelle light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  In an average year July sits at 18°C and January at -15°C. Expect a real winter and a strong spring after it. Count the season from break-up, usually late April. Averages place the thaw at late April and the freeze at late November. The strongest runs come at either end of the open season. Lac Mancelle runs to that rhythm year in and year out.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. Mapping records no facilities at all near this water. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Rules differ from one water to the next round here. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. If the gate is shut, Lac Chabot at 1.3 km is the nearest alternative. Where Lac Mancelle is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.