Lac McGuire, Quebec: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  You will find Lac McGuire in Lanaudière, Quebec. This is rolling bush country. Surface area is around 12 hectares, which gives you real water without needing a boat. The full circuit measures close to 1.8 km on foot. By elevation it is in the upper part of our Quebec listings. Saint-Donat-de-Montcalm is the closest place, 11 km off. Saint-Michel-des-Saints follows at 35 km, then Chertsey at 40 km. The nearest boundary is a fair way off.

• Where to Fish on Lac McGuire

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Fish documented in Lanaudière include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass, yellow perch, rock bass and brook trout. Records at this level tell you what is in the area. The shape of Lac McGuire rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  On the long-term average, July reads 17°C and January reads -14°C. A hard winter is normal, and the thaw brings a strong few weeks. Winter fishing happens on the ice here, with open water back around late April. Break-up near late April, freeze-up near late November: that is the shape of an average year. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. It sets the rhythm of the year at Lac McGuire.

• Tackle & Baits

  Access status is simply unknown for this water. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. A slipway 1.5 km out gives trailer access. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. If the gate is shut, Lac Dougherty at 0.7 km is the nearest alternative. The position on Lac McGuire is worth confirming on the day.