Fishing Lac Nemiscau in Nord-du-Québec, Quebec

• Overview

  Lac Nemiscau is listed under Nord-du-Québec, Quebec. Beyond the shoreline you have boreal forest. At 111.75 sq km you are fishing a fraction of it whatever you do. The bank is deeply indented, so shelter is easy to find in any wind. Size puts it in the front rank of our Nord-du-Québec list. Some 141 km away sits Waskaganish, the nearest settlement. The big place round here is Saguenay, 525 km distant. No county line comes close, which keeps the paperwork simple.

• Where to Fish on Lac Nemiscau

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Across Nord-du-Québec, recorded fish include Arctic charr, brook trout, lake trout and lake whitefish. Records at county level tell you what is around, not what is stocked here. On Lac Nemiscau that means starting tight and working out.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-term averages put July at about 16°C and January near -20°C. Long winters and short summers set the pattern. The lid arrives early and lasts until roughly mid May. From about mid May to around mid November, expect open water on the long-run figures. The weeks after the thaw and the ones before the freeze are the strongest. The season on Lac Nemiscau rarely departs from it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether the bank is open is not something our records settle. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. There is no mapped parking or launch close by, which usually means walking in. For the trout, small spinners and a box of nymphs cover both approaches. A landowner's word beats anything printed elsewhere. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Should this one be busy, Lac Kaupanaukau is 9.8 km off. For Lac Nemiscau in particular, ask before you travel.