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456-acre lake near Québec. The lake tops out around 85 ft. The depth chart is built from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the humps, channels and drop-offs you see are measured, not guessed. The rest of this page walks each species through its year, using the map's own scoring.
Drawn out, this is 456 acres of water rimmed by 4.2 miles of bank. Nearly circular (index 1.4), so the story is the bottom, not the bank. The shallow band under 15 ft claims about 42% of the surface — that's where the groceries are. End to end it runs roughly 1.7 mi, about 0.7 mi across. You'll find it in Antoine-Labelle MRC. Closest neighbour on DepthScout: Petit lac François, 1 mi southwest of here.
Carte de pêche interactive gratuite — Lac François, Québec : courbes de profondeur issues de relevés bathymétriques réels jusqu'à 26 m (85 pi), et les meilleurs sites pour omble de fontaine, touladi, omble chevalier et plus. Les profondeurs proviennent de la Géobase des bathymétries de lac du Québec (MELCCFP) lorsque disponibles.
Spring puts brook trout in skinny water — 2 to 15 ft is the zone. As the season builds they drop to 10 to 30 ft, wintering in 3 to 20 ft. Spring brook trout concentrate at Main-lake point, a prime-rated point around 6 ft. Warm-month bites cluster around early morning and the evening. A small spoon fished deep or a trolled lake-clear wobbler + worm covers the summer program.
| Saison | Profondeur | Meilleure fenêtre | Commencer à | Leurres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printemps | 2 to 15 ft | dawn & dusk | Main-lake point (6 ft) | Small inline spinner (gold), Tiny spoon |
| Été | 10 to 30 ft | dawn & dusk | Break off the point (7 ft) | Small spoon fished deep, Trolled lake-clear wobbler + worm |
| Automne | 2 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Main-lake point (6 ft) | Small spoon (orange), Spinner |
| Hiver | 3 to 20 ft | dawn | Break off the point (7 ft) | Small jigging spoon, Tungsten jig + plastic |
In spring, lake trout run shallow here, mostly 10 to 40 ft. Midsummer fish sit out in 26 to 85 ft before dropping to 20 to 80 ft for winter. Summer lake trout concentrate at Deep basin, a prime-rated deep basin around 85 ft. Fish it in early morning and you'll meet the bite. You won't need more than a white tube jig (deep) or a magnum spoon on downrigger most summer days.
| Saison | Profondeur | Meilleure fenêtre | Commencer à | Leurres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printemps | 10 to 40 ft | dawn & dusk | Secondary point (10 ft) | Casting spoon over shoals, Jerkbait (shallow) |
| Été | 26 to 85 ft | dawn | Deep basin (85 ft) | White tube jig (deep), Magnum spoon on downrigger |
| Automne | 10 to 50 ft | dusk & dawn | Secondary point (10 ft) | Heavy casting spoon, Jigging rap over reefs |
| Hiver | 20 to 80 ft | dawn | Deep basin (85 ft) | White tube jig, Airplane jig |
Spring arctic char on Lac François hold shallow, usually 4 to 15 ft. They move out to 20 to 60 ft in summer and finish the year down in 10 to 40 ft. Put Break off the point first on the milk run — a drop-off near 7 ft that grades prime for spring. The feeding windows run early morning. The summer box starts with a jigging spoon vertical or a tube jig (smelt).
| Saison | Profondeur | Meilleure fenêtre | Commencer à | Leurres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printemps | 4 to 15 ft | midday & dawn | Break off the point (7 ft) | Small casting spoon (silver/orange), Jerkbait (small) |
| Été | 20 to 60 ft | dawn | Break off the point (7 ft) | Jigging spoon vertical, Tube jig (smelt) |
| Automne | 8 to 30 ft | midday & dusk | Break off the point (7 ft) | Casting spoon (orange/gold), Beadhead streamer |
| Hiver | 10 to 40 ft | midday & dawn | Break off the point (7 ft) | Jigging spoon (glow/silver), Tungsten jig + plastic |
Spring lake whitefish on Lac François hold shallow, usually 15 to 45 ft. They move out to 26 to 85 ft in summer and finish the year down in 25 to 70 ft. Put Deep basin first on the milk run — a deep basin near 85 ft that grades prime for summer. The feeding windows run early morning. The summer box starts with a blade bait vertical or a small jigging spoon.
| Saison | Profondeur | Meilleure fenêtre | Commencer à | Leurres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printemps | 15 to 45 ft | midday & dawn | Break off the point (7 ft) | Small jig + waxworm, Blade bait (small) |
| Été | 26 to 85 ft | dawn | Deep basin (85 ft) | Blade bait vertical, Small jigging spoon |
| Automne | 8 to 30 ft | dusk | Break off the point (7 ft) | Small spoon (gold), Jig + plastic larva |
| Hiver | 25 to 70 ft | midday & dawn | Deep basin (85 ft) | Jigging spoon + bead chain, Tungsten jig + waxie |
Spring cisco (lake herring) on Lac François hold shallow, usually 10 to 40 ft. They move out to 40 to 80 ft in summer and finish the year down in 20 to 60 ft. Put Deep basin first on the milk run — a deep basin near 85 ft that grades prime for summer. The feeding windows run early morning. The summer box starts with a vertical flutter spoon (small) or a drop-shot micro plastic.
| Saison | Profondeur | Meilleure fenêtre | Commencer à | Leurres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printemps | 10 to 40 ft | dawn & dusk | Break off the point (7 ft) | Small silver spoon, Tiny swim jig (white) |
| Été | 40 to 80 ft | dawn | Deep basin (85 ft) | Vertical flutter spoon (small), Drop-shot micro plastic |
| Automne | 5 to 25 ft | dusk & dawn | Break off the point (7 ft) | Small casting spoon, Inline spinner (silver) |
| Hiver | 20 to 60 ft | dawn | Deep basin (85 ft) | Small jigging spoon (glow/silver), Tungsten jig + minnow head |
When the water first warms, walleye slide up into 4 to 15 ft. By summer they slide out to 15 to 35 ft, and by winter most fish are in 20 to 40 ft. If you only fish one area, make it Secondary point: a point around 10 ft that scores prime in fall. In summer the feeding windows fall in the evening and early morning. Keep a crawler harness on bottom bouncer or a deep crankbait (trolled) rigged through the warm months.
| Saison | Profondeur | Meilleure fenêtre | Commencer à | Leurres |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Printemps | 4 to 15 ft | dusk & dawn | Main-lake point (6 ft) | 1/8 oz jig + minnow, Hair jig |
| Été | 15 to 35 ft | dusk & dawn | Secondary point (10 ft) | Crawler harness on bottom bouncer, Deep crankbait (trolled) |
| Automne | 12 to 40 ft | dusk & night | Secondary point (10 ft) | Jigging rap, Jig + big minnow |
| Hiver | 20 to 40 ft | dusk & dawn | Deep basin (85 ft) | Jigging spoon + minnow head, Rattle bait |
Lac François also holds yellow perch (10 to 30 ft in summer), northern pike (8 to 20 ft in summer), smallmouth bass (10 to 30 ft in summer), rock bass (5 to 20 ft in summer), pumpkinseed (2 to 10 ft in summer), burbot (26 to 85 ft in summer). Pick any of them on the map above for rated spots and bait picks.
The chart marks 6 structure features on Lac François; the deepest is Deep basin at about 85 ft.
Season dates, license requirements, and size and bag limits for Québec waters are set by the Québec sport fishing rules (MELCCFP) — and special regulations can apply to Lac François specifically, so confirm the current rules before you fish.
Check the official Québec fishing regulations →
Lac François is about 85 ft (26 m) deep at its deepest point. The depth chart here comes from real state fisheries GPS surveys, so the contours reflect measured depths.
Lac François atteint environ 26 m (85 pi) à son point le plus profond. Les profondeurs proviennent de relevés bathymétriques réels.
Anglers target brook trout, lake trout, arctic char, lake whitefish, cisco (lake herring), walleye, yellow perch, northern pike, smallmouth bass, rock bass, pumpkinseed, burbot on Lac François. This species list is an informed estimate from Québec's provincial fish-range maps (bounded by each lake's depth and habitat), not a per-lake fish survey — Québec doesn't publish per-lake species records.
Deep basin is the top-rated area: a deep basin in about 85 ft of water that rates prime for lake trout in summer. The map above holds the full rated-spot list for every species and season.
For brook trout, the summer bite is best in early morning and the evening. Each species page section below lists the seasonal windows, and the map shows a live NOW badge when you're inside one.
Fishing on Lac François is regulated by the Québec sport fishing rules (MELCCFP). Check the official Québec regulations for current license requirements, season dates, and size and bag limits — special regulations can apply to this specific water.
Petit lac François 1 mi · Lac Gauvin 4 mi · Lac des Écorces 6 mi · Lac David 7 mi · Lac Saguay 8 mi · Lac Guérin 8 mi · Lac Allard 10 mi · Lac Toncamp 10 mi · Lac Cortès 11 mi · Lac Fabre 11 mi · Lac Légende 11 mi · Lac des Îles 11 mi
See how Lac François stacks up: best smallmouth bass lakes in Québec · best walleye lakes in Québec · best northern pike lakes in Québec · best yellow perch lakes in Québec
More water nearby: Antoine-Labelle MRC fishing maps (249 charts). Browse all Québec fishing maps or see every water on DepthScout. Bathymetry credit: state fisheries survey programs. How we build these maps. Fish here with a sonar unit that logs? Send us your depth data and we'll improve this chart, credited to you. For fishing guidance only, never navigation.