Old Man Winter will come out of hiding this weekend with some ice-making weather, but it seems too little too late for many deprived hardwater anglers in southern New England. Thankfully, there are plenty of other fishing opportunities to take advantage of during this unusually mild winter. Codfish continue to be an option off Block Island, as Rhode Island headboats are reporting solid action on clams lately. In freshwater, fishing for trout, yellow perch and smallmouth bass has been keeping plenty of anglers busy as well. There is also a cooperative striped bass population in the lower Housatonic River that isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Rhode Island
The anticipated winter cod fishery off of Block Island is in full swing. Captain Mike from the Frances Fleet reported that local cod fishing has been good to excellent lately, with matching weather to boot. Friday, Sunday and Monday turned out to be their best outings of the week. There were quite a few limit catches and most anglers went home with at least six or better cod each on those trips. Thursday, Saturday, Tuesday and Wednesday had moments of good fishing, though limits were much tougher to come by. The majority of the keepers have been nice market cod with the biggest each day generally in the low to mid-teens. A few pollock have been mixed in most outings as well, with the biggest ones recently in the 15 to 20-pound range. By far most of the action this past week was on clams. Some fish were jigged up here and there, but bait was far more productive even while drifting. Unfortunately, due to the abnormally warm surface temperatures, dogfish are still making their presence known on the grounds. The tremendous stacks of herring and mackerel should hold the cod and pollock around for some time and while not a complete grand slam, the fishing overall remains good and should only improve in the weeks ahead.
Another local headboat also experienced solid cod fishing this past week. Captain Chris of the Island Current called me Wednesday afternoon with a motivating report. This past week has seen light crowds and lots of limits on mostly clams in about 100-feet of water. Sunday was one of the better days with Chris McGuire landing the most cod onboard with 22 keepers. There were some cod in the lower 20-pound range over the last few days, along with a matching size pollock. Captain Chris echoed the occasional nuisance dogfish, though said it’s better now than in the last few weeks. He is certainly optimistic that this weekend’s cold snap will help the codfish bite.
In freshwater, the ponds that were stocked in late fall are giving up some nice trout, even though it’s not through the ice like originally intended. Captain Thom at Quaker Lane Tackle reported that one of his customers recently caught a pair of 5-pound-class rainbow trout at Barber Pond from shore on spinning lures. Other productive offerings could include flashy spoons, PowerBait, garden worms, or live shiners. Beverly at Big Bear Hunting & Fishing Supply also had a customer report a large trout catch, this one a 3.5-pound rainbow at Carbuncle Pond by Mark Souliere.
The trout fishing is also going strong in the Wood River. Dave at River & Riptide said that water levels have come down nicely and holdover rainbow trout and native brookies are falling for Woolly Buggers stripped slow or weighed nymphs like pheasant tails and hare’s ears. The main access points have been the most productive areas, although with certain gates closed you’ll have to hike in some spots.
Connecticut
In tidal waters, the Housatonic River holdover striper bite shined this past week with the mild winter weather. Chris of Stratford Bait and Tackle said that the Shelton area is where to be with soft-plastic baits on jig heads or Alabama rigs. He also noted that Bond’s Dock, closer to the mouth of the river, is still producing sea herring for those bouncing Sabiki rigs. Nick at Fisherman’s World also had good things to say about the lower Housatonic. One of his customers, Luke Tucciarone, landed a few keeper striped bass on the hot Alabama rig, including one that went 36-inches!
The coming deep freeze should improve what’s left of any ice in Connecticut, but most bodies of water remain wide open. There’s enough ice on Bigelow Pond for Blaine and Gary of Connecticut Outfitters to host their annual ice fishing event on Sunday. It’s not a tournament, just a fun-filled get-together and learning session for any and all to join. They will be doling out free shiners for bait and raffle tickets for an awesome prize, an electric Ice Gator auger. Things kick off around 7 AM and should last much of the day. There will be plenty of seasoned ice veterans there to check the ice throughout the outing to ensure everyone’s safety.
Candlewood Lake continues to give up some quality smallmouth bass, but launching a boat may become more difficult as the edges lock up with ice this weekend. Candlewood Bait and Tackle reported some jumbo yellow perch coming on live shiners, along with some big bronze smallies falling to lures like Keitech swimbaits fished slowly just off bottom.
The upper Farmington River is running at a manageable flow and fishing rather well at the moment. With some hand warmers and proper attire, this weekend could be a good time to capitalize on a hot winter trout bite. Derrick Kirkpatrick of CT Fish Guides informed me of fair to strong winter caddis hatches going on in the mornings. Fly anglers arriving early to the riverbank are taking rising trout on winter/summer caddis dry flies on light tippets. Throughout the day, anglers are also fooling quality trout below the surface with various nymph patterns, like caddis pupas, pheasant tails and golden stone flies. Visit Grady at UpCountry Sport Fishing in New Hartford for some “go to” flies and good starting locations.
Best Bets for the Weekend
The cod bite has been solid all week and could very well continue into the weekend. The headboat captains I spoke with this week are confident that the cold snap will improve the action even more so. Dress warm and be prepared to be fishing with bait most of the outing.
Trout seemed to own freshwater reports this week. In Rhode Island, Barber and Carbuncle Ponds are the spots to be casting for hefty rainbow trout. Or, if rivers are more your speed, head to Rhode Island’s Wood or Connecticut’s Farmington. If you are looking for your first or last ice trip of the season, visit Bigelow Pond on Sunday for an enjoyable and informative outing with the chance to win a brand new auger.