July 20
A few days of warm stable weather have meant a lot for the region’s anglers, both in fresh and saltwater. Freshwater rivers and streams have seen water levels dropping to good or in some places ideal levels and insect hatches have been encouraged by a rise in water temperatures. The lakes have been seeing a more defined thermocline which makes it easier to find the depths that trout and salmon are frequenting. This week several stripers up to and over 50 pounds have been reported, as baitfish such as mackerel and pogies are attracting these big fish to shore and some of the offshore humps.
As Donna Beyer at Kittery Trading Post’s Fishing Department noted last year at this time, “The hexagenia mayfly, more commonly known locally as just the ‘hex’ and a very similar mayfly (they might just be the same critter) the green drake, is a July thing.”
“The emergence of these bugs brings out the best trout and salmon (and other inset-eating fish) fly fishing of the summer season. These mayflies are the largest of their group and therefore demand attention from some of the largest trout and salmon, which seem to discard much of their caution when the hex hatch is on. This occurrence is mostly a Northcountry happening, with far north Vermont and mid-state to northern areas of both New Hampshire and Maine having some waters that produce this great opportunity each year.”
“This hatch, up until a few years ago, was strictly a dry fly fishery. But in the last couple of decades, some smart fly fishermen have discovered that a hex nymph, fished on sinking line and retrieved in short twitches will attract some very exciting hits. Some anglers have even found that trolling the hex nymph flies on sinking line before the actual evening hatch starts will also account for plenty of strikes.”
Donna said that because the normal hex or green drake hatch will start shortly before dark and continue well into the night, the nymph fishing has extended by several hours the amount of time that fly anglers have a good chance at catching some great fish.
“There are several wet fly and nymph creations that have provided plenty of action during the daytime. One of the most noted is the maple syrup pattern, a Maine fly that is a favorite of many outstanding Maine fishermen. Other good flies that mimic the hex or green drake fly are the wiggle-nymph, a jointed nymph that when stripped in small jerks, provides a very realistic action. Another great pattern is a heron-type fly tied with wood duck side feathers surrounding the hook and covering the length of a long shank number 12 streamer fly hook.”
“Our fishing report editor likes a marabou pattern tied with dirty blond marabou. He ties this fly with no body but with a short shank hook, letting the marabou tail out well behind the hook for plenty of action. With a hackle winding of a wood duck side feather that extends well behind the hook, this fly mimics the hex or green drake nymph in both coloration and swimming action. Short strikes on the short hook are not a problem. The opposite is the case with excited fish taking the whole thing too deeply at times.”
“For the night hatch of the actual dry flies, you don’t have to duplicate the exact bug. In fact, it’s possible that just the opposite is true. There are so many real bugs on the water that often a fly that is different will draw strikes the best. The things that are important are size and shape, although a fly that is messed-up a bit from casting or fish catching may draw a lot of strikes as it resembles a hex or green drake adult that is molting its case or has been disabled.”
“There are two schools of thought on giving your dry flies action with a slow retrieve and we don’t have a favorite. Big trout and salmon have even been caught by people slowly trolling a big bushy fly such as a white Wulff or stimulator! Some anglers prefer to just let the fly sit still on the surface while others swear by a slow and steady retrieve, leaving a little wake in the water. Both work. Try both ways and make your choice,” Donna suggests.
“Contacting the regional offices of the state’s fishery divisions should give you a good choice of ponds and lakes and the dates that the hatches usually occur. If the hatch is on, don’t wait too long. As the hatch goes on, the best fishing declines,” Donna ended.
MAINE:
Maine Registered Master Guide Stu Bristol is happy about our current conditions: “The Saco River (freshwater) is finally coming down to fishable levels. The dam is still running open but the fish have settled in the flow, making them more predictable. Brown trout have begun to feed during the daylight hours again. The high water has kept them nocturnal for most of June – the big ones, that is. Fish in the 10-18 inch range have been mixing right in and competing with the smallmouth bass right up at the shoreline. A size #1 popping bug of any description has been working well for smallies and browns.”
“Due to the water fluctuations, anglers without a guide should study up on the habits of bass during rising and falling water conditions. As the water level drops the surface temperatures rise and the larger bass take up feeding stations in deeper water. The smaller bass will still hang on the fast riffles and right tight to the shoreline wherever there is gravel bottom of ledge along the shore.”
“In the smaller lakes, the large and smallmouth bass have been very active at daybreak and again at dusk. The insect hatches are larger than usual and the frogs and salamanders have provided plenty of food for bass in heavy cover. Senkos in bright colors are still the lure to beat, especially in the lakes invaded by milfoil. Senkos with no weight or fish fished wacky-style (hook in the middle of the worm) are outfishing the crankbaits and spinner baits two or three to one.”
“Despite the easy access to striped bass and mackerel, local anglers are taking advantage of the great brook and small stream angling. Of course, the Maine mosquitoes are larger than hummingbirds but good repellent or a headnet should eliminate the problem. The size and numbers of trout are well worth the aggravation.”
“Speaking of stripers, the rivers are still giving up some fish but usually in low-light conditions. Most of the larger bass are roaming the surf. Old Orchard Beach and Parsons Beach (Kennebunk) anglers are finding slot-limit and bass in the mid-30-inch range on nights when the high tide comes right after dusk. The late-night, live bait gang are still taking the over-40-inch bass by trolling live eels or tossing cut baits.” www.orionguideservice.com
This just in from Captain Barry Gibson, who after a long career as editor of Saltwater Sportsmen Magazine editor, now guides for striper and bluefish in the Boothbay Harbor, Kennebec River area: “Striper fishing improved steadily this past week in the Boothbay area. Charter skippers and private anglers are finding fish in the lower Kennebec River and adjacent beaches, as well as the bays. Live mackerel seem to be the best bait, and several bass pushing 40 inches were taken, along with plenty of ‘slots’ from 20 to 26 inches.”
“The offshore grounds around The Kettle and Sagadahoc Ledge have been quiet, with lots of whales in residence but few tuna sighted. Water temps both inshore and offshore, still about five degrees below normal, continue to creep upwards and the murkiness due to all the rain in June is beginning to clear up.”
Craig Bergeron at Saco Bay Tackle emailed us this enthusiastic report: “This weeks report is jam packed with inshore and offshore action from our loyal customers and local guides. The inshore fishing is decent in Saco Bay with anglers having the best luck early in the morning or in the evening. Try using clams, worms, or chunked mackerel fished off the beach or jetty.”
“Capt. Cal Robinson has been catching stripers in the Saco River using a tube and worm rig. To catch fish consistently with a tube you need to use leadcore line (45lb.) with a 20ft. fluorocarbon leader (25lb.) so you can get the tube near the bottom.”
“We have had many reports of bluefish around the Saco and Scarborough area. These fish are in the four to ten pound-range. Use bright colored poppers and swim plugs such as the Mambo Minnow, Rapala X-Rap, Bombers and Surface Tensions.”
“The mackerel fishing is tough because of the bluefish inshore. We use lots of chum and small Sabiki rigs to hold ‘em near the boat. Usually you can jig enough to fill the livewell before the bass or blues show up. We found a few near Stratton and Bluff Island a few days ago.”
“The offshore report has also been good the past week. Jean Bealeau and crew aboard Primate ventured out to Stellwagen Bank last Monday to find large schools of feeding bass, whales and birds. They were in search of tuna trolling daisy chains and swimming plugs with no luck. Chris Peterson aboard Dantilu boated another giant last week. He is one of the few anglers’ in this area that trolls using a Green Stick. This is by far the deadliest way to catch any kind of tuna trolling. The ground fishing is excellent on both Tantas and Jeffrey's Ledge. My father and Butch fished on Tantas Friday with a limit of cod and large pollock. The dogfish were thick and stayed close to the surface the entire morning; they used 14 and 16oz. jigs with a cod teaser fly rigged on a drop loop. You can tip the fly with a strip of clam or shrimp. A few of our customers will be offshore this weekend shark fishing. Hopefully I will have some good news in next week’s report.”
Freshwater fishing seems to be peaking, according to Dave Garcia at Naples Bait on Long Lake in the Sebago Region. “Ty (his son) and I fished a bass tourney over at Little Sebago Lake on the weekend and everyone seemed to have good catches. We had a combined catch of around 17 pounds, as did several other boats. That put us in sixth place for the tourney. The winning bag was around 20 pounds. Because Ty and I won the previous two tourneys (USA Bassin’ Trail-Maine) the sixth place finish kept us in the lead for the season so far. Next week’s event is going to be held at Mousam Lake. Seeing that Ty won a tourney there last week, we as a team should do well there at that event.”
Dave said that the largemouths were mostly in the weeds. “For most of the time when I was going for numbers I was using rubber frogs. But when I was looking for a lunker a six-inch Senko worm rigged Texas-style dropped into the holes in the weeds brought us a five pound, five ounce fish that we thought would hold-up for the lunker prize but we got beat by a fish of six pounds, two ounces.”
“Bill Swartz, who runs several of the nearby state’s USA Bassin’ Trail events, is doing one heck of a good job. There were 30 boats in the last event and the crowd seems to be growing each week.”
“The togue (lake trout) fishing over at Sebago Lake is still unbelievable. But now they are on the move and starting to go into different depths, as the water becomes warmer. The regular summer patterns are now working as well as fishing some of the deeper structures. Sewed-on shiners remain the best bet and most of the regulars use some kind of spoons or spinners in front of the bait when trolling. The Sebago salmon fishing has slowed down a lot.”
“But the white perch fishing has hit its summer mode. Evening fishing here on Long Lake has been picking up and we hear great reports about Pleasant Lake in Casco. The real small Mepps spinners work well, either tipped with a little bit of worm or fished clean. Try slow trolling until you find a school and then just drift and concentrate on casting to the fish.”
“The trout fishing on the Crooked River should be just about right now. The flows have dropped and evening hatches should be going on but also know that the daytime hatches of mosquitoes could be world class,” he warned.
“You missed it this morning,” kidded Ken at River’s Edge Sports in Oquossoc in the Rangeley Lakes Region. “Jerry and I were out on the lake early and we boated a brookie that would go about four pounds! Our total was only three fish but catching a brook trout of that size is a big deal. The other two fish we boated were both salmon on the small size. All the fish were caught on rigged for trolling Gulp Minnows (smelt). We were fishing with downriggers set at 35 to 45 feet over 75 feet of water and marking a lot of fish at the depth we were fishing.”
“Ours wasn’t the only big brook trout caught lately. Yesterday, Ray Soriano, who works here and also guides fishermen, had a brookie that went about four and a half pounds, also caught in Rangeley Lake. Most of us are very careful to release those big fish unharmed.”
“My best fishing of the week though didn’t come here on Rangeley. I took out a seven-year-old that landed eleven fish! We were fishing Big Dodge Pond trolling DB Smelt lures. Our catch was just about equal, salmon and brook trout with the biggest salmon going 20 inches and the big brook trout was around 18 inches.”
“The word from Mooselookmeguntic Lake is that the action there is slow but getting better. Mooselook usually provides faster action than most of the other lakes here but this year, for some reason, has been quite slow. But the river fishing is peaking right now with flows getting back to where it’s good fishing but because the water is warming the fish will soon be dropping back into the lakes. Much of the action on the rivers has been below some of the dams like Upper and Middle.”
“We’ve had some nice hatches. At Quimby Pond there’s been a hex hatch and up at Big Kennebago Lake there has been several hatches going on,” Ken added.
NEW HAMPSHIRE:
Jason MacKenzie at Suds-n-Soda Sports in Greenland reports that the saltwater fishing really took off this weekend. My brother Jim and Scott Kennerson caught around 20 stripers out on the Piscataqua trolling umbrella rigs. It seems like the fish were present the whole length of the river, from the mouth up to the Bay. One thing that Jim noted was that most of the fish they caught were in deep water.”
“The fishing along the beach and rocky areas on the coast has also picked-up finally. Not much news about bluefish but stripers to 40 inches are hitting both live eels and chunk bait fished from shore and boats just offshore.”
“We’ve still got plenty of mackerel. Around the #2KR Buoy at the mouth or about two miles out. Also, there are mackerel at the Isles of Shoals and a few stripers showing up out there on the backside of White Island and around White Island Ledge. There also has been reports of a lot of big sand eels around the Shoals and that should hold the stripers there as well as mackerel.”
“Flounder fishing again seems to be best around Rye Harbor. Last week we had several people tell us that they’ve been catching flounder while anchored inside the harbor while a lot of fish are being caught off the jetties both from shore or boat. They’re not all keeper sized but there are enough that size to make it worth while.”
“We’re not seeing the number of boats heading offshore for cod and haddock as it seems the striper fishing is keeping their attention. The influx of dogfish out on the groundfish ledges has caused trouble but those guys that know how to use jigs for their cod and haddock are still getting some good catches with some big pollock mixed-in.”
Jason revealed the top three leaders on the Suds-n-Soda All Summer Long Striper Derby. Legendary striper fisherman John Twitchell is in first place with a 50-inch fish that weighed 43.5 pounds. Also often in the running is Steve Courshesne with a 49 incher that weighed 41.5 pounds. Hanging onto third place is Carl Geraci with a nice thirty pounder.
“We had a great weekend,” enthused George Taylor at Taylor’s Bait and Tackle in Madbury. “Over at the reservoir (Madbury) they ran out of parking places. Crappie, perch, pickerel and some really nice bass were providing the action. We heard that the same was happening at both Swain’s Pond (Barrington) and Baxter’s (Rochester).”
“What really has been the surprise this summer has been how the trout fishing has been holding-out. We get daily reports of nice catches from Barbados right here in town. Also, we have guys going over to Lucas (Nottingham) and they are still catching fish. And the fishing has also held up over at Stonehouse Pond (fly fishing only).”
“A lot of our striper fishermen are bridge anglers. And they seem to be doing better this last week fishing at the Scammell Bridge and the General Sullivan Bridge and around the shoreline at Hilton Park. Also, the Dover/Eliot Bridge remains popular.”
Captain Jamie Savage a Dover Marine’s Sport Shop just emailed us this news: “The three biggest bass (stripers) I've ever seen caught fell victim to live mackerel baits in Gloucester this week. The 51", 52", and 53" stripers all topped 50 pounds and were caught on mackerel suspended 8' below balloons over deep water. The trick is jig up macks on Sabikis then put them out on balloons and continue to jig up bait - when the macks disappear get ready for a bite. The striper fishing has been good overall but we're still waiting for the big schools of bass to move off Jeffrey’s and Stellwagen and come inshore where we can get a shot at them.”
“Groundfishing was good also, with a ton of haddock coming from 240 to 260 feet. Blue mackerel-colored 9 oz. butterfly jigs were the only ones they wanted. The cod were all shorts except one 40 pounder mixed in with the haddock. I got to try-out my new 2-speed Avet SX4/6 and Taramar 8' West Coast jig stick combo. That low gear-ratio comes in handy for winching up big fish.”
“This week the thermocline-salmon fishing really picked up,” according to Alan Nute at AJ’s Bait and Tackle in Meredith on Lake Winnipesaukee. “We’ve heard of quite a few double-digit catches by both charter and sport boats. The salmon seem to be keying-in on this year’s white perch hatch, which usually happens each year around this time. So our white perch pattern flies are working well and the white perch pattern lures are also doing good as is the Smelt Gun lure. The salmon are not huge but we did see a four pounder caught from Winni this week and also weighed a six pounder that came out of another local lake. We tie our own white perch flies which have been accounting for some good salmon catches.”
“Lakers are starting to school up and if you find them you can have some good sport. One boat found a school at around 45 feet depth and caught 18 of them. We’re not sure where that happened but we do know that good reports have started to come from around Black Point. Quite a few fishermen have started to jig fish for the lakers when they school up and are having a lot of fun and big catches doing this. Bucktail jigs seem to be the most popular lure.”
MASSACHUSETTS:
Pete Santini at Fishing FINatics in Everett was pretty excited about the striper fishing in Boston Harbor. “It’s been unreal. The bass have been whacking the Santini Tube-n-Worm set-ups like crazy. Red, honey mustard, pink, black –it doesn’t seem to matter. Most of the fish are in the 34 to 36 inch range. Ram’s Head off Lovells Island, Egg Rock, Little Nahant Beach, Swamscott. The fish seem to be all over. Even a lot of the charter boats are pulling tube-n-worm rigs.”
“Captain Chucky (Distefano-Skip-a-Dory Charters) has had some great days using live pogies, which also seem to be all over the place – Wolleston Beach, Winthrop Harbor and even up around the 99 Bridge. He’s had fish in the 40 to 45 inch range every trip.”
“We lost the flounder for a while but we finally found them and they’ll probably be there all summer. They are on the slope between 20 and 28 feet at Broad Sound off of Deer Island. Drift that depth but don’t go deeper or shallower. They are concentrated. Do not chum! You’ll have every dogfish in the world bothering you! The flounder are running from 14 to 18 inches. Zobo rigs with seaworm bait is the key. Mixed-in with the flounder are a few codfish up to 7-8 pounds. These are the red color strain cod that we think are not migrators.”
“Out on Stellwagen there seems to be not as many of the schoolie tuna but still worthwhile going out. Trolled squid-rigged spreader bars in pink, blue, green fished early in the morning have been working. These fish are in the 150 to 200 pound range while the bigger ones are being hit pretty hard by the stick-boats (commercial harpoon fishermen) at Peaked Hill, SW Corner and Fishing Ledge.”
(The commercial tuna harpoon fleet has a separate quota and area highly regulated)
At Surfland on Plum Island, Kay Moulton’s daughter Martha was holding forth. “We’re seeing some of the biggest stripers in a long time! One at 51 pounds that was 51 inches caught by Jack Cook on Saturday night. He lives right here on Plum Island. He caught it on chunk mackerel.”
“Other stripers of 30 pounds, a 32 pounder caught from a kayak on a tube-n-worm, another big one of 35 pounds caught yesterday. And lots more we just don’t keep track of.”
“Flounder fishing off the beach and just offshore has been excellent. We had one group come in that all six of them caught their eight fish limit while fishing off the beach using seaworms. And a lot of the half-day party boats have started to concentrate on flounder drifting in the 25 to 30 foot range just offshore here,” she ended.
A few days of warm stable weather have meant a lot for the region’s anglers, both in fresh and saltwater. Freshwater rivers and streams have seen water levels dropping to good or in some places ideal levels and insect hatches have been encouraged by a rise in water temperatures. The lakes have been seeing a more defined thermocline which makes it easier to find the depths that trout and salmon are frequenting. This week several stripers up to and over 50 pounds have been reported, as baitfish such as mackerel and pogies are attracting these big fish to shore and some of the offshore humps.
As Donna Beyer at Kittery Trading Post’s Fishing Department noted last year at this time, “The hexagenia mayfly, more commonly known locally as just the ‘hex’ and a very similar mayfly (they might just be the same critter) the green drake, is a July thing.”
“The emergence of these bugs brings out the best trout and salmon (and other inset-eating fish) fly fishing of the summer season. These mayflies are the largest of their group and therefore demand attention from some of the largest trout and salmon, which seem to discard much of their caution when the hex hatch is on. This occurrence is mostly a Northcountry happening, with far north Vermont and mid-state to northern areas of both New Hampshire and Maine having some waters that produce this great opportunity each year.”
“This hatch, up until a few years ago, was strictly a dry fly fishery. But in the last couple of decades, some smart fly fishermen have discovered that a hex nymph, fished on sinking line and retrieved in short twitches will attract some very exciting hits. Some anglers have even found that trolling the hex nymph flies on sinking line before the actual evening hatch starts will also account for plenty of strikes.”
Donna said that because the normal hex or green drake hatch will start shortly before dark and continue well into the night, the nymph fishing has extended by several hours the amount of time that fly anglers have a good chance at catching some great fish.
“There are several wet fly and nymph creations that have provided plenty of action during the daytime. One of the most noted is the maple syrup pattern, a Maine fly that is a favorite of many outstanding Maine fishermen. Other good flies that mimic the hex or green drake fly are the wiggle-nymph, a jointed nymph that when stripped in small jerks, provides a very realistic action. Another great pattern is a heron-type fly tied with wood duck side feathers surrounding the hook and covering the length of a long shank number 12 streamer fly hook.”
“Our fishing report editor likes a marabou pattern tied with dirty blond marabou. He ties this fly with no body but with a short shank hook, letting the marabou tail out well behind the hook for plenty of action. With a hackle winding of a wood duck side feather that extends well behind the hook, this fly mimics the hex or green drake nymph in both coloration and swimming action. Short strikes on the short hook are not a problem. The opposite is the case with excited fish taking the whole thing too deeply at times.”
“For the night hatch of the actual dry flies, you don’t have to duplicate the exact bug. In fact, it’s possible that just the opposite is true. There are so many real bugs on the water that often a fly that is different will draw strikes the best. The things that are important are size and shape, although a fly that is messed-up a bit from casting or fish catching may draw a lot of strikes as it resembles a hex or green drake adult that is molting its case or has been disabled.”
“There are two schools of thought on giving your dry flies action with a slow retrieve and we don’t have a favorite. Big trout and salmon have even been caught by people slowly trolling a big bushy fly such as a white Wulff or stimulator! Some anglers prefer to just let the fly sit still on the surface while others swear by a slow and steady retrieve, leaving a little wake in the water. Both work. Try both ways and make your choice,” Donna suggests.
“Contacting the regional offices of the state’s fishery divisions should give you a good choice of ponds and lakes and the dates that the hatches usually occur. If the hatch is on, don’t wait too long. As the hatch goes on, the best fishing declines,” Donna ended.
MAINE:
Maine Registered Master Guide Stu Bristol is happy about our current conditions: “The Saco River (freshwater) is finally coming down to fishable levels. The dam is still running open but the fish have settled in the flow, making them more predictable. Brown trout have begun to feed during the daylight hours again. The high water has kept them nocturnal for most of June – the big ones, that is. Fish in the 10-18 inch range have been mixing right in and competing with the smallmouth bass right up at the shoreline. A size #1 popping bug of any description has been working well for smallies and browns.”
“Due to the water fluctuations, anglers without a guide should study up on the habits of bass during rising and falling water conditions. As the water level drops the surface temperatures rise and the larger bass take up feeding stations in deeper water. The smaller bass will still hang on the fast riffles and right tight to the shoreline wherever there is gravel bottom of ledge along the shore.”
“In the smaller lakes, the large and smallmouth bass have been very active at daybreak and again at dusk. The insect hatches are larger than usual and the frogs and salamanders have provided plenty of food for bass in heavy cover. Senkos in bright colors are still the lure to beat, especially in the lakes invaded by milfoil. Senkos with no weight or fish fished wacky-style (hook in the middle of the worm) are outfishing the crankbaits and spinner baits two or three to one.”
“Despite the easy access to striped bass and mackerel, local anglers are taking advantage of the great brook and small stream angling. Of course, the Maine mosquitoes are larger than hummingbirds but good repellent or a headnet should eliminate the problem. The size and numbers of trout are well worth the aggravation.”
“Speaking of stripers, the rivers are still giving up some fish but usually in low-light conditions. Most of the larger bass are roaming the surf. Old Orchard Beach and Parsons Beach (Kennebunk) anglers are finding slot-limit and bass in the mid-30-inch range on nights when the high tide comes right after dusk. The late-night, live bait gang are still taking the over-40-inch bass by trolling live eels or tossing cut baits.” www.orionguideservice.com
This just in from Captain Barry Gibson, who after a long career as editor of Saltwater Sportsmen Magazine editor, now guides for striper and bluefish in the Boothbay Harbor, Kennebec River area: “Striper fishing improved steadily this past week in the Boothbay area. Charter skippers and private anglers are finding fish in the lower Kennebec River and adjacent beaches, as well as the bays. Live mackerel seem to be the best bait, and several bass pushing 40 inches were taken, along with plenty of ‘slots’ from 20 to 26 inches.”
“The offshore grounds around The Kettle and Sagadahoc Ledge have been quiet, with lots of whales in residence but few tuna sighted. Water temps both inshore and offshore, still about five degrees below normal, continue to creep upwards and the murkiness due to all the rain in June is beginning to clear up.”
Craig Bergeron at Saco Bay Tackle emailed us this enthusiastic report: “This weeks report is jam packed with inshore and offshore action from our loyal customers and local guides. The inshore fishing is decent in Saco Bay with anglers having the best luck early in the morning or in the evening. Try using clams, worms, or chunked mackerel fished off the beach or jetty.”
“Capt. Cal Robinson has been catching stripers in the Saco River using a tube and worm rig. To catch fish consistently with a tube you need to use leadcore line (45lb.) with a 20ft. fluorocarbon leader (25lb.) so you can get the tube near the bottom.”
“We have had many reports of bluefish around the Saco and Scarborough area. These fish are in the four to ten pound-range. Use bright colored poppers and swim plugs such as the Mambo Minnow, Rapala X-Rap, Bombers and Surface Tensions.”
“The mackerel fishing is tough because of the bluefish inshore. We use lots of chum and small Sabiki rigs to hold ‘em near the boat. Usually you can jig enough to fill the livewell before the bass or blues show up. We found a few near Stratton and Bluff Island a few days ago.”
“The offshore report has also been good the past week. Jean Bealeau and crew aboard Primate ventured out to Stellwagen Bank last Monday to find large schools of feeding bass, whales and birds. They were in search of tuna trolling daisy chains and swimming plugs with no luck. Chris Peterson aboard Dantilu boated another giant last week. He is one of the few anglers’ in this area that trolls using a Green Stick. This is by far the deadliest way to catch any kind of tuna trolling. The ground fishing is excellent on both Tantas and Jeffrey's Ledge. My father and Butch fished on Tantas Friday with a limit of cod and large pollock. The dogfish were thick and stayed close to the surface the entire morning; they used 14 and 16oz. jigs with a cod teaser fly rigged on a drop loop. You can tip the fly with a strip of clam or shrimp. A few of our customers will be offshore this weekend shark fishing. Hopefully I will have some good news in next week’s report.”
Freshwater fishing seems to be peaking, according to Dave Garcia at Naples Bait on Long Lake in the Sebago Region. “Ty (his son) and I fished a bass tourney over at Little Sebago Lake on the weekend and everyone seemed to have good catches. We had a combined catch of around 17 pounds, as did several other boats. That put us in sixth place for the tourney. The winning bag was around 20 pounds. Because Ty and I won the previous two tourneys (USA Bassin’ Trail-Maine) the sixth place finish kept us in the lead for the season so far. Next week’s event is going to be held at Mousam Lake. Seeing that Ty won a tourney there last week, we as a team should do well there at that event.”
Dave said that the largemouths were mostly in the weeds. “For most of the time when I was going for numbers I was using rubber frogs. But when I was looking for a lunker a six-inch Senko worm rigged Texas-style dropped into the holes in the weeds brought us a five pound, five ounce fish that we thought would hold-up for the lunker prize but we got beat by a fish of six pounds, two ounces.”
“Bill Swartz, who runs several of the nearby state’s USA Bassin’ Trail events, is doing one heck of a good job. There were 30 boats in the last event and the crowd seems to be growing each week.”
“The togue (lake trout) fishing over at Sebago Lake is still unbelievable. But now they are on the move and starting to go into different depths, as the water becomes warmer. The regular summer patterns are now working as well as fishing some of the deeper structures. Sewed-on shiners remain the best bet and most of the regulars use some kind of spoons or spinners in front of the bait when trolling. The Sebago salmon fishing has slowed down a lot.”
“But the white perch fishing has hit its summer mode. Evening fishing here on Long Lake has been picking up and we hear great reports about Pleasant Lake in Casco. The real small Mepps spinners work well, either tipped with a little bit of worm or fished clean. Try slow trolling until you find a school and then just drift and concentrate on casting to the fish.”
“The trout fishing on the Crooked River should be just about right now. The flows have dropped and evening hatches should be going on but also know that the daytime hatches of mosquitoes could be world class,” he warned.
“You missed it this morning,” kidded Ken at River’s Edge Sports in Oquossoc in the Rangeley Lakes Region. “Jerry and I were out on the lake early and we boated a brookie that would go about four pounds! Our total was only three fish but catching a brook trout of that size is a big deal. The other two fish we boated were both salmon on the small size. All the fish were caught on rigged for trolling Gulp Minnows (smelt). We were fishing with downriggers set at 35 to 45 feet over 75 feet of water and marking a lot of fish at the depth we were fishing.”
“Ours wasn’t the only big brook trout caught lately. Yesterday, Ray Soriano, who works here and also guides fishermen, had a brookie that went about four and a half pounds, also caught in Rangeley Lake. Most of us are very careful to release those big fish unharmed.”
“My best fishing of the week though didn’t come here on Rangeley. I took out a seven-year-old that landed eleven fish! We were fishing Big Dodge Pond trolling DB Smelt lures. Our catch was just about equal, salmon and brook trout with the biggest salmon going 20 inches and the big brook trout was around 18 inches.”
“The word from Mooselookmeguntic Lake is that the action there is slow but getting better. Mooselook usually provides faster action than most of the other lakes here but this year, for some reason, has been quite slow. But the river fishing is peaking right now with flows getting back to where it’s good fishing but because the water is warming the fish will soon be dropping back into the lakes. Much of the action on the rivers has been below some of the dams like Upper and Middle.”
“We’ve had some nice hatches. At Quimby Pond there’s been a hex hatch and up at Big Kennebago Lake there has been several hatches going on,” Ken added.
NEW HAMPSHIRE:
Jason MacKenzie at Suds-n-Soda Sports in Greenland reports that the saltwater fishing really took off this weekend. My brother Jim and Scott Kennerson caught around 20 stripers out on the Piscataqua trolling umbrella rigs. It seems like the fish were present the whole length of the river, from the mouth up to the Bay. One thing that Jim noted was that most of the fish they caught were in deep water.”
“The fishing along the beach and rocky areas on the coast has also picked-up finally. Not much news about bluefish but stripers to 40 inches are hitting both live eels and chunk bait fished from shore and boats just offshore.”
“We’ve still got plenty of mackerel. Around the #2KR Buoy at the mouth or about two miles out. Also, there are mackerel at the Isles of Shoals and a few stripers showing up out there on the backside of White Island and around White Island Ledge. There also has been reports of a lot of big sand eels around the Shoals and that should hold the stripers there as well as mackerel.”
“Flounder fishing again seems to be best around Rye Harbor. Last week we had several people tell us that they’ve been catching flounder while anchored inside the harbor while a lot of fish are being caught off the jetties both from shore or boat. They’re not all keeper sized but there are enough that size to make it worth while.”
“We’re not seeing the number of boats heading offshore for cod and haddock as it seems the striper fishing is keeping their attention. The influx of dogfish out on the groundfish ledges has caused trouble but those guys that know how to use jigs for their cod and haddock are still getting some good catches with some big pollock mixed-in.”
Jason revealed the top three leaders on the Suds-n-Soda All Summer Long Striper Derby. Legendary striper fisherman John Twitchell is in first place with a 50-inch fish that weighed 43.5 pounds. Also often in the running is Steve Courshesne with a 49 incher that weighed 41.5 pounds. Hanging onto third place is Carl Geraci with a nice thirty pounder.
“We had a great weekend,” enthused George Taylor at Taylor’s Bait and Tackle in Madbury. “Over at the reservoir (Madbury) they ran out of parking places. Crappie, perch, pickerel and some really nice bass were providing the action. We heard that the same was happening at both Swain’s Pond (Barrington) and Baxter’s (Rochester).”
“What really has been the surprise this summer has been how the trout fishing has been holding-out. We get daily reports of nice catches from Barbados right here in town. Also, we have guys going over to Lucas (Nottingham) and they are still catching fish. And the fishing has also held up over at Stonehouse Pond (fly fishing only).”
“A lot of our striper fishermen are bridge anglers. And they seem to be doing better this last week fishing at the Scammell Bridge and the General Sullivan Bridge and around the shoreline at Hilton Park. Also, the Dover/Eliot Bridge remains popular.”
Captain Jamie Savage a Dover Marine’s Sport Shop just emailed us this news: “The three biggest bass (stripers) I've ever seen caught fell victim to live mackerel baits in Gloucester this week. The 51", 52", and 53" stripers all topped 50 pounds and were caught on mackerel suspended 8' below balloons over deep water. The trick is jig up macks on Sabikis then put them out on balloons and continue to jig up bait - when the macks disappear get ready for a bite. The striper fishing has been good overall but we're still waiting for the big schools of bass to move off Jeffrey’s and Stellwagen and come inshore where we can get a shot at them.”
“Groundfishing was good also, with a ton of haddock coming from 240 to 260 feet. Blue mackerel-colored 9 oz. butterfly jigs were the only ones they wanted. The cod were all shorts except one 40 pounder mixed in with the haddock. I got to try-out my new 2-speed Avet SX4/6 and Taramar 8' West Coast jig stick combo. That low gear-ratio comes in handy for winching up big fish.”
“This week the thermocline-salmon fishing really picked up,” according to Alan Nute at AJ’s Bait and Tackle in Meredith on Lake Winnipesaukee. “We’ve heard of quite a few double-digit catches by both charter and sport boats. The salmon seem to be keying-in on this year’s white perch hatch, which usually happens each year around this time. So our white perch pattern flies are working well and the white perch pattern lures are also doing good as is the Smelt Gun lure. The salmon are not huge but we did see a four pounder caught from Winni this week and also weighed a six pounder that came out of another local lake. We tie our own white perch flies which have been accounting for some good salmon catches.”
“Lakers are starting to school up and if you find them you can have some good sport. One boat found a school at around 45 feet depth and caught 18 of them. We’re not sure where that happened but we do know that good reports have started to come from around Black Point. Quite a few fishermen have started to jig fish for the lakers when they school up and are having a lot of fun and big catches doing this. Bucktail jigs seem to be the most popular lure.”
MASSACHUSETTS:
Pete Santini at Fishing FINatics in Everett was pretty excited about the striper fishing in Boston Harbor. “It’s been unreal. The bass have been whacking the Santini Tube-n-Worm set-ups like crazy. Red, honey mustard, pink, black –it doesn’t seem to matter. Most of the fish are in the 34 to 36 inch range. Ram’s Head off Lovells Island, Egg Rock, Little Nahant Beach, Swamscott. The fish seem to be all over. Even a lot of the charter boats are pulling tube-n-worm rigs.”
“Captain Chucky (Distefano-Skip-a-Dory Charters) has had some great days using live pogies, which also seem to be all over the place – Wolleston Beach, Winthrop Harbor and even up around the 99 Bridge. He’s had fish in the 40 to 45 inch range every trip.”
“We lost the flounder for a while but we finally found them and they’ll probably be there all summer. They are on the slope between 20 and 28 feet at Broad Sound off of Deer Island. Drift that depth but don’t go deeper or shallower. They are concentrated. Do not chum! You’ll have every dogfish in the world bothering you! The flounder are running from 14 to 18 inches. Zobo rigs with seaworm bait is the key. Mixed-in with the flounder are a few codfish up to 7-8 pounds. These are the red color strain cod that we think are not migrators.”
“Out on Stellwagen there seems to be not as many of the schoolie tuna but still worthwhile going out. Trolled squid-rigged spreader bars in pink, blue, green fished early in the morning have been working. These fish are in the 150 to 200 pound range while the bigger ones are being hit pretty hard by the stick-boats (commercial harpoon fishermen) at Peaked Hill, SW Corner and Fishing Ledge.”
(The commercial tuna harpoon fleet has a separate quota and area highly regulated)
At Surfland on Plum Island, Kay Moulton’s daughter Martha was holding forth. “We’re seeing some of the biggest stripers in a long time! One at 51 pounds that was 51 inches caught by Jack Cook on Saturday night. He lives right here on Plum Island. He caught it on chunk mackerel.”
“Other stripers of 30 pounds, a 32 pounder caught from a kayak on a tube-n-worm, another big one of 35 pounds caught yesterday. And lots more we just don’t keep track of.”
“Flounder fishing off the beach and just offshore has been excellent. We had one group come in that all six of them caught their eight fish limit while fishing off the beach using seaworms. And a lot of the half-day party boats have started to concentrate on flounder drifting in the 25 to 30 foot range just offshore here,” she ended.