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December 31, 2008

        The New Year is starting off with a snowstorm and a week of frigid temperatures – great news for fans of ice fishing! If fishing through a hole isn’t your thing, there’s still some open water for trout and salmon stalkers on the Cape, and both the Thames and the Housatonic rivers in Connecticut are giving up big numbers of holdover stripers.

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By Jimmy Fee

        Despite the fact that the snow is coming down so heavily that I can barely make out my truck in the parking lot, I’m pretty excited about this week’s fishing report. Even though things are pretty slow in fresh water, with half the anglers unsuccessfully fishing the open water and the other half waiting for safe ice, the word of great holdover striper fishing had reached just about every shop on my call list. So if any of you are making it a New Year’s Resolution to fish more, put it into action right away. The 2009 winter striper fishing is kicking off in a major way, so bundle up and get out there

Derek Peterson captured the 2008 fluke record on his Dad's boat "In The Hole" with this 9-pound doormat! Will he repeat in 2009, or will one of his two older brothers take the title?

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Send photos to kevin@onthewater.com, and
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        After slowing down for about a month, the holdover bass in the Providence River have turned back on. Steve McKenna at Quaker Lane Bait and Tackle reported that the past week’s fishing has been great, but most of the action has been coming after dark. The key to hooking up with these fish consistently has been small white soft-plastic jigs. Steve said Fin-S Fish and Zoom Salty Super Flukes have been outproducing everything, including bucktails and swim shads.
At the Saltwater Edge, Corey and Chris both heard about consistent holdover action in the Thames and Providence Rivers. First Beach in Newport is also expected to have some life this week, although not the kind most fishermen would be anticipating. The annual Polar Bear Plunge will be taking place there on New Year’s Day, when some of the same crazies who don wetsuits to fish in much warmer water shed the neoprene and plunge into the frigid seawater. Maybe one of them can let me know if they see any fish.
        David at River and Rip Tide in Coventry gave me the only positive freshwater report this week when he mentioned that the Wood River was down and running gin clear. Trout have been spread throughout the river and have been lethargic but willing to attack the right presentation. The “right” presentation for winter trout is low and slow, in this case using bead-head nymphs to ply the deeper parts of the river. David also said the Thames River in 15-foot to 25-foot depths has been giving up large numbers of stripers in on jigs and flies sent deep with fast-sinking lines.
        Jack at the Fish Connection in Preston has been hearing about the red-hot holdover striper fishing in the Thames all week. Jack said catches of up to 75 fish are not uncommon, and although the majority of fish are 16 to 18 inches in length, fish up to 40 inches have been taken. Not too shabby for January.
Although Captain Jerry Morgan of Captain Morgan’s Bait and Tackle in Madison didn’t have much to report, we did reminisce on the 2008 fishing season. As Captain Jerry called it, 2008 was the Year of the Bluefish in his neck of the woods, with choppers up to 19 pounds pushing their way up the rivers. If 2009 sees the same amount of large bait that 2008 did, perhaps Jerry will be able to hang afabled 20-plus-pound blue from his scale next year.

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By Jennifer Tribble

        As much as I wish I could give you a hearty dose of holiday cheer via exhilarating angling opportunities, the recent wind and cold has really limited what fishy fun Cape anglers are afforded right now. Fortunately, living on the Cape means that trout, panfish, salmon, cod, haddock and holdover stripers are almost always a possibility. Just bundle up when you explore the local waterways, be patient, and in time you might be rewarded with good ice fishing and a broodstock salmon.

Frank Bowman hoists a big bass he caught in 2008, fishing a live mackerel in June.

Do you have a current great catch photo? Email it to
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Send photos to kevin@onthewater.com, and
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      The blustery winds this past week have severely curtailed saltwater expeditions, but that doesn’t mean the fish aren’t there. Mackerel are still around at the east end of the Canal, according to Bruce at Canal Bait and Tackle, and some anglers are reporting catching winter flounder and smaller cod. There are probably still mackerel by the “1” Can off Barnstable, and where there are macks, said Bruce, there are undoubtedly cod beneath them. Jim at Eastman’s in Falmouth added that overwintering striped bass in the local salt ponds and estuaries is a possibility, but he discourages pressuring these fish in the deep winter months.
      Groundfishing out on Georges Bank has been excellent – when the winds permit offshore vessels to leave port. The Helen H party boat out of Hyannis has been reporting excellent catches of cod (mostly) and haddock, but the bluster has canceled many recent trips. Anglers who play it week by week, paying close attention to the weather patterns, might just find a fix for their salt addiction on one of these trips – most of the bait shops I spoke to this week indicated they’d be heading out on a head boat in the coming weeks.
      Taking into account the weather, freshwater fishing is the name of the game, and no one can complain about the trout fishing on the Cape. Browns up to 3 pounds have been hitting the shores of Mares Pond, and Grews and Mashpee-Wakeby are also producing rainbows, browns and brookies. Peters Pond has been especially good lately for sizable browns and ‘bows, and one savvy Eastman’s patron even boated a 10-pound holdover salmon using (of all things) a salmon egg.
      So what about the Mass Wildlife broodstock salmon? The last I heard, the ice storm in Western Mass/New Hampshire put the stockings on hold, and since the days since have been plagued with snow, ice and federal holidays, it’s likely that we’ll have to wait until 2009 to see any new broodstock. Fortunately, Peters Pond, Big Cliff/Sheeps Pond and Little and Long ponds still produce the occasional holdover, which may tide us over until the stocking trucks get moving again.
      The crew at the Hook Up in Orleans braved 15-degree temps to try for some trout and salmon at Big Cliff last Monday, and though the bite was slow, it was not terrible. Floating night crawlers off the bottom, they hooked a couple rainbows and a 2-pound brownie in a few hours. They targeted Big Cliff again on Wednesday, and then again on Christmas – the difference one day can make was astounding. On Wednesday, the fishing was slow, shiners weren’t catching anything, and for awhile it looked like the heaviest fish was going to be an 11-ounce rainbow. On Thursday, however, a shiner/bobber rig was catching trout as soon as it was cast, resulting in seven nice-sized browns and rainbows. Lt. Dan guesses that the difference in catch rates probably had to do with the variation in barometric pressure, so once again, you really have to take it one day at a time. Dan added that his one outing to Herring Pond was really disappointing – a couple white and yellow perch, despite its reputation for good trout fishing.
      Garret at the Goose Hummock has been pretty busy with his hunting, but not too busy to report good fishing at Schoolhouse and Goose ponds in Chatham. When I asked about the local ponds freezing up in the cold snap, he said that the wind will prevent the bigger, open ponds (like Cliff) from maintaining good ice, but the smaller kettle ponds throughout the Cape could be a viable option in the near future. 

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By Ron Powers  

      I’m hoping that Old Man Winter’s resolution for the New Year is to make ice – a lot of ice – and real quickly. I think that’s a wish we all can toast to! And considering that the current weather forecast is predicting sub-freezing conditions 24/7, the possibility of many local waterbodies (and maybe a north-of-the-border estuary or two) locking up is high. The occasional schoolie striper is still being taken by the Amelia Earhart Dam, and you also might want to keep in mind that cold-tolerant anglers who don’t get queasy in rough seas are cranking in pollock and even haddock from offshore banks.

Send us your biggest catch of 2008! Conner Kennedy of NH caught two big bass on an annual June trip to the Merrimack River, one on a live mackerel and one on a Slug-Go.

Do you have a current great catch photo? Email it to
us and you might just see it in the fishing report.
Send photos to kevin@onthewater.com, and
be sure to include the angler's name and the size of fish.

      Pete Santini of Fishing FINatics in Everett usually morphs into a snowbird right about now, but this year’s he’s vowed to delay his getaway and do some ice fishing. Before last week’s thaw, he checked out Wrights Pond in Medford, a longtime suburban bass favorite, and found solid ice. Those few inches of ice no doubt melted when the mercury began to rise, but with the freeze kicking in, this pond should lock up again real soon. Just east of Wrights, next to the Flynn Rink, is Quarter Mile Pond in Stoneham. Although totally weed-strangled during the summer, Quarter Mile can be an unexpected wintertime hot spot for bass and pickerel.
A few hardy souls out there are devoting time to the Amelia Earhart Dam, and they’re picking up one or two stripers per outing as a result. A striper at the end of the line in January can almost redefine the concept of the “offseason” – it almost feels like you’re cheating. I would get ahold of some pike shiners and float a few on the freshwater side of the dam up against the pilings (remember that a freshwater fishing license is required). While most of the catch will be small, there have been some winter solstice stripers approaching 38 inches long. For artificial offerings, try white bucktails with curly-tail grubs or herring-colored Road Runner jigs.
Groundfishing zealots who pick their spots between bouts of raging weather are finding the waters of Stellwagen hardly desolate; in fact, both pollock and haddock have joined their gadoid cousins. What attracts the fish to the grounds at this time of the year is a mass of krill, which makes for easy pickings. While the pollock will hit nearly any jig tossed in front of their noses, the haddock seem to prefer pinkish shrimp-like teasers. I talked to a guy who has been fishing with Walsh’s American Classic out of Lynn, and he reported that they’ve been into a bumper crop of big redfish this year. If your experience with these panfish has been lacking due to their generally diminutive size, just imagine tossing a few plate-sized 3-pounders in the cooler. These red-hued fish are a delight for the eyes as well as the palette. No special gear is required for redfish; they will hit teasers and jigs as big as themselves. You just need a knowledgeable skipper who knows a patch of rough bottom in deep water where they will be holding.
Out west a bit, some anglers managed to creep out on Asnacomet (Comet) Pond in Hubbardston and were rewarded with some beautifully colored rainbows for their efforts. By the New Hampshire border, Clubhouse Pond in Warwick continues to attract attention, as it’s been one of the rare ice-locked ponds for some weeks. Warmwater species as well as salmonoids abound in this pond. Rodney at Flagg’s in Orange told me about scads of ice fishermen who are finding solid ice and plenty of quarry in the “setbacks” of the Connecticut River in Hinsdale, New Hampshire. Panfish, pike, bass, trout and walleye are all fair game there.
With respect to New Hampshire, Kyle of Suds ‘N’ Soda told me that the shop is chock-full of all the necessary gear to catch smelt on Great Bay. The general consensus is that the bay should lock up this week, provided the wind dies down. Although there aren’t any smelt camps on Great Bay, there are a few access areas where you can park and drag your own lightweight shanty across the bay. One of the charms of fishing for smelt on Great Bay is that the catch can be varied. In addition to smelt, tommycod are a possibility, white perch are not out of the question, and even holdover stripers occasionally come out to play – with predictable consequences for the wispy smelt rods.
The shanties of “Shantytown,” Maine, are ready to go and hopes are high that patrons will be filling up pails of smelt within a week. This fishing version of a tailgate party might be just the thing for members of Patriot Nation who suddenly find themselves with a lot of time on their hands. It also doesn’t hurt that smelt are nutritionally more sensible than a plate full of bratwurst. Peter, Craig and the rest of the crew at Saco Bay Tackle Company cater to the smelt crowd, and a call to them at (800) 499-4453 will tell you which camps are ready to go. For sweetwater ice-fishing action, Craig expects many local ponds to lock up imminently. Good producers for brown trout and brookies are Deer Pond in Hollis, Barkers Pond in Dayton and Kennebunk Pond in Lyman, with the latter often getting a good dose of broodstock brook trout.

Best Bets for the Weekend

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