Lake Geneva (Lac Léman) cheat sheet
Every fish, the permit and the keep rule, the rigs and the one box of tackle. One page to take to the water.
Lake Geneva (Lac Léman)
Pike shut early April, perch shut most of May. The deep char and féra close mid-October to year's end. Summer and early autumn are the broad window.
Permit
You need a Léman lake permit. Buy it from a Swiss canton (Geneva day permit about CHF 10, plus 50% for non-residents; Vaud short-term online at vd.ch) or, on the French shore, the Léman card at cartedepeche.fr. Trolling needs the trolling permit/option.
Keep rule (unusual)
Every perch, char and trout caught on rod must be kept and may not be returned, even under 15 cm. Do not cut the head or tail before home. Fish for the table; pack a cool box.
Sizes and quotas (2026)
Trout 50 cm (4/day), char 30 cm (8/day), féra 37 cm (10/day), pike 50 cm (2/day), perch 15 cm (100/year). Féra is the eating fish. Wet hands, handle carefully.
Bank vs boat · season · time → rig
| Fish | From the bank | From a boat | Best time | Rig |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Perch | Yes, the main bank fish | Yes, over the drop-offs and the shoals | First light, last hour of daylight | Drop shot or sliding float rig |
| Perch (deep, tight to bottom) | Yes, over a steep drop-off | Yes | Dawn and dusk | Slip-float paternoster |
| Pike | Yes, the reed edges, bays and harbour mouths | Yes, the plateaus and drop-offs | Low light; cooler months | Pike rig |
| Zander | Possible in low light at the margins | Yes, over the drop-offs | Dusk, after dark, dull days | Vertical jig or drop shot (heavier) |
| Féra (whitefish) | Very hard (holds over deep water) | Yes, the proper method, found with a sounder | Through the day at shoal depth | Gambe / sabiki |
| Arctic char (keep it) | No | Yes, deep in the Grand Lac | Deep, through the open season | Gambe / sabiki or trolling |
| Lake trout (keep it) | Shore fly is possible | Yes, near the surface and the breaks | Trolled through the open season | Trolling or fly fishing |
Bank only is a perch, pike and zander trip at dawn and dusk. A boat adds the féra, the char and the trolled trout.
The rigs
PE 0.8 braid → 0.22 fluoro leader → small soft lure on a hook in-line, weight on the tag (3–14 g)
PalomarBraid → 0.22 fluoro leader → 15 g jighead with a 2/0 hook and a 4" paddletail, worked straight down with a lift-and-drop
Palomar · non-slip loopMain line → bobber stopper → bead → float (~11.5 g) → split shot → swivel → hook with maggot or worm
PalomarBobber stopper → bead → slip float → dropper loop with the hook on the branch → small weight on the end
Palomar · dropper loopWire or heavy fluoro trace → big soft shad on a jighead (lure), or a deadbait under a float (bait)
Palomar · non-slip loopA string of small nymphs on dropper loops with a weight on the end, lowered to the shoal the sounder shows
Palomar · dropper loopWhat you need
One light spin outfit and one small box of terminal tackle build the everyday rigs. The pike trace, a sabiki and a cool box are the extras.
The knots
| Knot | Ties | Used by |
|---|---|---|
| Palomar | The workhorse, every rig. | Every rig |
| Dropper loop | A standing loop in the line for a hook branch. | The paternoster, the gambe |
| Non-slip loop | A fixed loop at a lure or jighead. | The vertical jig, pike lures |
Learn the Palomar first; it ties most of this. Wet every knot before you pull it tight.
This one page is the printable I take to the water.
Give me an email and I will show it to you, ready to print. A one-page reference: what's on by month, the licence and rules, a rig for every fish, the shared tackle box and the knots.
I'll send you the cheat sheet, and email you when I add a new place to fish. Nothing else.