Fishing Petit lac Charles in Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec

• Overview

  Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean in Quebec is where Petit lac Charles sits. The surface lies 597 metres up. At 6 hectares it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. By elevation it is in the upper part of our Quebec listings. Some 63 km away sits Saint-Honoré, the nearest settlement. It is 75 km to Saguenay, the nearest city. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on Petit lac Charles

  No depth figure has reached our records, which makes a plummet useful. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. Species logged across Saguenay/Lac-Saint-Jean include northern pike, Atlantic salmon, lake whitefish and fallfish. At least one recorded species is protected in parts of its range; read the local rules before targeting anything. On Petit lac Charles a short move beats a long cast.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Expect July to average close to 15°C, with January the cold end at about -19°C. Long winters and short summers set the pattern. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from mid May. Open water usually runs from mid May until about early November. Reckon on open water from spring through to late autumn, with May and June the strongest. Petit lac Charles runs to its own calendar within the local pattern.

• Tackle & Baits

  Ownership and access are not documented in what we hold. Launch at Débarcadère, 700 m from the water. For the pike, wire up and throw larger lures along the weed edges. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. Lac Bedard, 0.4 km away, makes the obvious fallback. Signs at Petit lac Charles carry more weight than any list.