Lac Menneval in Laurentides: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Set in Laurentides, Lac Menneval is a Quebec water. The surroundings are lake country bush. Surface area runs to roughly 1.47 sq km, so plan for one area rather than the whole. Around 12 km of bank, which is a long day on foot. On our Laurentides list it sits near the top for size. Ferme-Neuve is the closest town at 68 km. The big place round here is Gatineau, 205 km distant. It sits well inside the county, so one set of rules covers it.

• Where to Fish on Lac Menneval

  Depth remains unrecorded, so treat the first session as a survey. Look for the band where the shallows give up and the bottom falls away. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Across Laurentides, recorded fish include pumpkinseed, smallmouth bass and yellow perch. County records show what lives in the area; the local agency holds the water-by-water list. Work Lac Menneval in sections rather than trying to cover it.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between -16°C in January and 17°C in July. The season turns properly here, and fish follow it closely. Break-up comes around late April, and the run that follows is short and strong. The season between ice runs from about late April to mid November. Early summer and early autumn carry the open-water season. Time your trip to Lac Menneval by conditions rather than dates.

• Tackle & Baits

  No access rule appears in what we hold. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. We find no slipway, car park or made path within a short radius, so treat access as rough. For the bass here, soft plastics worked slow along cover and a spinnerbait for searching do most of the work. A phone call first saves an afternoon. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. For a change of water, Lac Marcotte is 2.3 km distant. Check the current arrangement for Lac Menneval.