Fishing in Tursujuq National Park

Tursujuq sits along the eastern shore of Hudson Bay in Nunavik, covering just over 26,000 square kilometres of boreal forest, taiga, and open tundra.

The park straddles the transition zone between those ecosystems, and its water reflects that range: massive lakes formed by ancient meteorite impacts, long river systems that once drew the attention of hydroelectric planners, and brackish tidal waters where freshwater and Hudson Bay meet.

This is remote subarctic fishing, accessed through the Inuit community of Umiujaq. The two circular basins of Lac à l'Eau Claire — together forming the second largest natural lake in Québec — anchor the park's interior.

The Rivière Nastapoka runs 170 kilometres through the park before reaching Hudson Bay, and was protected in part to safeguard freshwater salmon habitat.

The Lacs des Loups Marins, the double meteor-impact basin to the east, holds a landlocked subspecies of harbour seal — a reminder that these waters are ecologically unusual.

Lac Tasiujaq is brackish and tidal, more a marine environment than a freshwater fishery. Trout are present in the park's waters; the Rivière Nastapoka and the river systems feeding the large lakes are the logical focus for anglers.

Access is fly-in, with Umiujaq as the gateway. The park rents fishing equipment and canoes, and canoe-camping is a listed activity, which points to multi-day river travel as the practical way to cover water here.

Permits work differently than elsewhere in Québec. To fish in Parc national Tursujuq, non-beneficiary visitors need both a provincial fishing licence and a park fishing permit — the two are not interchangeable.

The park fishing permit is issued through Nunavik Parks; contact the Kuujjuaraapik office at (819) 929-3348 for current requirements. Anglers are also required to fill out fishing reports, available at the camps.

Fish caught must be consumed within the park, with one exception allowed to leave. These rules do not apply to beneficiaries of the 1975 James Bay and Northern Québec Agreement, who retain their rights to fish within the park.

The Inuit and Cree have fished these waters for thousands of years. Coming here as a sport angler means entering a place that is still actively used and carefully watched.

Check current regulations with the park before you go — not as a formality, but because the rules exist for good reason in waters this intact.