Quebec Canoe Tripping

[Lenny]

Hi all,

With the sun here, this is the time of year I pull out the backroads mapbook and start planning camping and canoe trips for the spring and summer. This year, my goal is to focus on camping places that I don't have to pay in Quebec. The rules out 31 Mile Lake, ZECs and Papineau Labelle. Any suggestions on lakes/rivers where this is possible? I've had a hard time finding crown land maps for Quebec so if anyone has any advice where to find them I'd appreciate it. I'm experienced in white water canoeing and portaging and I'm more of a river fisherman than lake fisherman.

Cheers,

Lenny

[ShawnD]

Hi Lenny,
have you looked at Reservoire du Poisson Blanc?

[Lenny]

Hi Shawn,

Thanks for the reply. Looks like a beautiful lake and have heard it's a great lake to paddle. Unfortunately like 31 Mile Lake it's $40 per tent in low season and $50 a night in high season to camp on the islands.

[calaboggler]

You could try Lac Dumont? camp on your own private beach. great fishing. only problem is the main access point, the big beach is a crazy party zone. I've seen more than a couple trashed cars there. There are other accesses elsewhere on the lake But you need to know the way. there is also free camping on the upper reaches of the coulonge and noire rivers.

[smitty55]

Not sure how far you want to go or how big of a watershed you like, but you may want to check out Kipawa. Large water and a gorgeous lake that you could spend years paddling. You could start at the Laniel end, in the middle at Kipawa, or down the Maniwaki road at the Red Pine Chute end. If you were interested I would recommend visiting/joining the Kipawa forums at http://www.kipawa.net/viewforum.php?f=1 ... 1e8f0dba85 Great guys there that would be more than willing to help. Also, you could send long time member here Scuro a pm. He has fished Kipawa a fair amount and might be able to point out some good areas as well. Most of my time up there has been spent in the hub area from out of Kipawa town to Hunters lake.

Here's a map that will give you an idea of this expansive watershed. Warning!! If you do go up there you won't want to leave. Every time I went up for a week all I wanted to do was stay for another. Some folks travel thousands of miles to go up there ever year,it is that good. I highly recommend it.



Cheers

[Fishoholic]

That's some good info Smitty, thanks for sharing.

In regards to Dumont, it's a beautiful lake but it is jammed pack on weekends at the beach. There a lot of places to find seclusion around islands and stuff but If you are looking to be the only one out there I wouldn't suggest going near the beaches of Dumont. Kinda of like mcbay in the middle of nowhere. A lot of yahoos with 4 wheelers and booze. There was even a rave there one weekend I went with the fiancé, she was not impressed lol.

[Fishoholic]

Oh ya and if you are used to river fishing this will be way different because it is a big open, deep lake in the main part that can get pretty choppy. There are islands and fingers of the lake you could probably get out of the wind but it wor be anything like fishing a river.

[tbone1088]

How much does it cost for a weekend of fishing in Quebec for a non resident?

[Fishoholic]

Not 100% sure as I always get a year non resident permit which is around $60 or maybe a little more. I am pretty an out of province license for one weekend would be about Half of that so if you are going to fish in Quebec on more than one weekend you may as well get the year permit and then you are free to go as much as you want. Also note that Quebec year permits run from April to April and not January to January like here in Ontario. I know more than a few guys who ended up buying a license twice because they thought it expires in January when in fact it doesn't expire until April.

[smitty55]

That's some good info Smitty, thanks for sharing.

Hey, no problem Brad. Your welcome. Kipawa is my favorite place by far, it truly is a paradise for me and I don't mind sharing info at all. It's about a 4 1/2 - 5 hour drive from Ottawa to the village, with 99% of it in Ontario. I was first introduced to it by an old friend, Chucky Holmes. First couple of times I went there over 30 years ago we camped in the shortcut near Corbeau Island. After that we went the lodge route, staying at Corbeau lodge a few times,( now privately owned by Eric Lindros), and then staying many times at Alwaki lodge, a 14 mile tour. Very good Laker and Walleye fishing and now has excellent Smallmouth fishing in the northern end. My pb Walleye comes from there,in the back corner of of Corbeau island at 10:30 at night. It was 31.5" and 11.5lb and caught on 4lb test. Won the week long derby with that one, while my partner won the Laker derby at 10.5 lb. Pretty good for a 14 ft tinny, considering many of the guests were Americans with big fancy boats.
Back to the OP, it is big water in areas, tons of islands big and small, but it has always surprised me with the amount of canoeists I see out there, with lots of larger groups paddling through.

Cheers

[Lenny]

Wow thanks everyone for their help. Smitty, Kipawa definitely sounds intriguing, thanks for the tip! I'm definitely going to check that out this summer, I'll let you know how it goes!