Discover the secret: Lake Saltonstall
By Dan Nowak
EAST HAVEN - One of the best kept secrets in Connecticut happens to be right in our own backyard when it comes to enjoying big-time freshwater fishing - Lake Saltonstall.
On Monday I went on a tour of the long, narrow lake located in Branford and East Haven - three miles long and about a mile wide at its widest point - with Joe Kochis of Milford.
He manages the lake and recreation area as the crew leader for the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority, which owns the property.
The awesome aspect of this lake, a reservoir used as a water supply for surrounding towns, is its huge fish. It is one of the premier walleye fishing lakes in the state with six- to nine-pound walleyes routinely taken out each week. The lake also has above-average largemouth bass and trout have been known to also grow to trophy-sized proportions.
Several times huge fish jumped out of the water along our boat as it slowly trolled along. Kochis' fish-finder on the boat consistently showed large groups of fish below us including some that indicated impressive size.
Two items make this lake special and allow for enormous fish.
First, there are limits - limited use of the lake and limits on how many fish you can take home.
You can only fish on the lake Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday and you need a special recreational permit to fish there. Anyone with a permit can fish off the shore but private boats aren't allowed. Only boats supplied by the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority can be used on the lake. There are 27 available for public rental.
When it comes to largemouth bass, only one fish is allowed per person with a minimum length of 18 inches. Walleyes are limited to two per person at a minimum of 18 inches. There is a limit of five trout per person, both brown and rainbow combined, with no size limit. Trout are stocked in the lake three times - for opening day, again a few weeks into the season and in the fall.
The other contributing factor to the size of the fish is the impressive depth of the water. About a half-mile out in a stretch of water in the middle of the lake, a short distance north of the boat launch area, the lake is at its deepest at 119 feet. The average depth of the entire lake is 41 feet with the depth dropping quickly only 10-15 feet offshore.
"It's amazing how many people who live around here don't even know this lake exists," said Kochis, 60. "It's one of the top five deepest lakes in the state and it's considered a trophy lake by the state (Connecticut Department of Environment fisheries division). The fishing is above average and it's unbelievable.
"There isn't that much fishing done here and because it's so deep the fish stay on the bottom and survive longer. The fishing has been pretty good this year, especially with largemouth bass. Good-sized fish are taken out of here every week."
According to South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority spokesperson Gail Cuomo, since the SCCRWA has been keeping records of catches the past 10 years, the largest walleye fished out of Lake Saltonstall since 1998 was 29 inches long and weighed 9.5 pounds.
The largest largemouth bass weighed 9.3 pounds and the largest brown trout weighed six pounds and was 21 inches long.
However, Kochis was sure he recalled a 12-pound walleye being caught one year.
The most recent impressive catches reported to the SCCRWA happened last week. Phil Grabowski of Stratford caught a 25-inch, 5.9-pound walleye using a finess minnow and Anthony Morazzini of Woodbridge caught a 21.5-inch, 6-pound largemouth bass using a plastic worm.
One-year recreation permits to fish at Lake Saltonstall are $25 for individuals (allows one free guest), $35 for families (allows two free guests), $20 for senior individuals aged 60 and over and $30 for senior families. The permits also allow access and fishing at other recreation areas - Hammonasset in Madison, Genesee in Madison-Guilford, Sugarloaf Hills in Guilford, Big Gulph in North Branford, Maltby Lakes in West Haven-Orange, Lake Chamberlain in Bethany-Woodbridge and Lake Bethany.
You can also buy daily permits for $5.
Boat rentals are $25 on Tuesday and Friday for use from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. Boat rentals are $35 on Saturday and Sunday for use from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. If you bring your own motor and battery (electric trolling motor, no gas allowed) the boat rental drops to $10 during the week and $15 on the weekend. You also have to dip your motor into a clorox solution to kill any Zebra mussel larvae that could be introduced to the water.
You can also arrange for private charters on the lake with Kochis on days the public isn't allowed to fish (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday). The cost is $65 for anglers without recreation permits and $45 for those with permits.
There are five hiking trails at Lake Saltonstall recreation area and biking is also allowed. Shoreline fishing is allowed from sunrise to sunset.
The lake also is home to panfish, carp and calico bass (crappies).
"This is a great place to bring kids who like to fish," Kochis said.
"It's great for any type of fisherman because of the challenge these trophy fish provide. There are a lot of holdovers in here and that means an opportunity to catch a big one every time you come here."
For more information on Lake Saltonstall, located on Hosley Ave. off Route 1 in Branford, visit www.rwater.com/recreation or call (203) 401-2654.
Dan Nowak can be reached at dnowak@nhregister.com.
By Dan Nowak
EAST HAVEN - One of the best kept secrets in Connecticut happens to be right in our own backyard when it comes to enjoying big-time freshwater fishing - Lake Saltonstall.
On Monday I went on a tour of the long, narrow lake located in Branford and East Haven - three miles long and about a mile wide at its widest point - with Joe Kochis of Milford.
He manages the lake and recreation area as the crew leader for the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority, which owns the property.
The awesome aspect of this lake, a reservoir used as a water supply for surrounding towns, is its huge fish. It is one of the premier walleye fishing lakes in the state with six- to nine-pound walleyes routinely taken out each week. The lake also has above-average largemouth bass and trout have been known to also grow to trophy-sized proportions.
Several times huge fish jumped out of the water along our boat as it slowly trolled along. Kochis' fish-finder on the boat consistently showed large groups of fish below us including some that indicated impressive size.
Two items make this lake special and allow for enormous fish.
First, there are limits - limited use of the lake and limits on how many fish you can take home.
You can only fish on the lake Tuesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday and you need a special recreational permit to fish there. Anyone with a permit can fish off the shore but private boats aren't allowed. Only boats supplied by the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority can be used on the lake. There are 27 available for public rental.
When it comes to largemouth bass, only one fish is allowed per person with a minimum length of 18 inches. Walleyes are limited to two per person at a minimum of 18 inches. There is a limit of five trout per person, both brown and rainbow combined, with no size limit. Trout are stocked in the lake three times - for opening day, again a few weeks into the season and in the fall.
The other contributing factor to the size of the fish is the impressive depth of the water. About a half-mile out in a stretch of water in the middle of the lake, a short distance north of the boat launch area, the lake is at its deepest at 119 feet. The average depth of the entire lake is 41 feet with the depth dropping quickly only 10-15 feet offshore.
"It's amazing how many people who live around here don't even know this lake exists," said Kochis, 60. "It's one of the top five deepest lakes in the state and it's considered a trophy lake by the state (Connecticut Department of Environment fisheries division). The fishing is above average and it's unbelievable.
"There isn't that much fishing done here and because it's so deep the fish stay on the bottom and survive longer. The fishing has been pretty good this year, especially with largemouth bass. Good-sized fish are taken out of here every week."
According to South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority spokesperson Gail Cuomo, since the SCCRWA has been keeping records of catches the past 10 years, the largest walleye fished out of Lake Saltonstall since 1998 was 29 inches long and weighed 9.5 pounds.
The largest largemouth bass weighed 9.3 pounds and the largest brown trout weighed six pounds and was 21 inches long.
However, Kochis was sure he recalled a 12-pound walleye being caught one year.
The most recent impressive catches reported to the SCCRWA happened last week. Phil Grabowski of Stratford caught a 25-inch, 5.9-pound walleye using a finess minnow and Anthony Morazzini of Woodbridge caught a 21.5-inch, 6-pound largemouth bass using a plastic worm.
One-year recreation permits to fish at Lake Saltonstall are $25 for individuals (allows one free guest), $35 for families (allows two free guests), $20 for senior individuals aged 60 and over and $30 for senior families. The permits also allow access and fishing at other recreation areas - Hammonasset in Madison, Genesee in Madison-Guilford, Sugarloaf Hills in Guilford, Big Gulph in North Branford, Maltby Lakes in West Haven-Orange, Lake Chamberlain in Bethany-Woodbridge and Lake Bethany.
You can also buy daily permits for $5.
Boat rentals are $25 on Tuesday and Friday for use from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. Boat rentals are $35 on Saturday and Sunday for use from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. If you bring your own motor and battery (electric trolling motor, no gas allowed) the boat rental drops to $10 during the week and $15 on the weekend. You also have to dip your motor into a clorox solution to kill any Zebra mussel larvae that could be introduced to the water.
You can also arrange for private charters on the lake with Kochis on days the public isn't allowed to fish (Monday, Wednesday, Thursday). The cost is $65 for anglers without recreation permits and $45 for those with permits.
There are five hiking trails at Lake Saltonstall recreation area and biking is also allowed. Shoreline fishing is allowed from sunrise to sunset.
The lake also is home to panfish, carp and calico bass (crappies).
"This is a great place to bring kids who like to fish," Kochis said.
"It's great for any type of fisherman because of the challenge these trophy fish provide. There are a lot of holdovers in here and that means an opportunity to catch a big one every time you come here."
For more information on Lake Saltonstall, located on Hosley Ave. off Route 1 in Branford, visit www.rwater.com/recreation or call (203) 401-2654.
Dan Nowak can be reached at dnowak@nhregister.com.