Rare are ice conditions this good across the board! Ordinarily, 10 inches of ice are coupled with 10-plus inches of snow, making the outing more like an ordeal and less about fun. The fishing has been a match for the conditions with pike coming from Pontoosuc, walleye out of the Oxbow, smelt from shanties up north and more bass, panfish and pickerel than you can shake a spud at!

Massachusetts Fishing Report

Rod from Arlington Bait and Tackle said that while he hasn’t seen ice fishermen out on the Upper Mystic Lakes, active skating is a strong hint that the ice is good. This is a multi-species water body fueled by the rebound in river herring, and there have even been reports of striped bass big enough to impress saltwater anglers. Spy Pond has been active by the Route 2 side and they are targeting trout successfully at Horn Pond by the pumphouse cove and in front of the flagpole.

Eric from Lunkers in Ashland told me of terrific trout fishing recently on Ashland Reservoir. A potential sleeper spot that is a bit out of the radar of most is Hopkinton Reservoir, which is also stocked with trout. Heard Pond, being an adjoining water body with the Sudbury River, could have just about anything swimming around in it including pike and catfish. Focus on Farm Pond if a big bass is on your list.

Robin from Robin’s Bait and Tackle in Norfolk reported that one lucky patron chased 65 flags the other day in one of the Foxborough cranberry bogs. Cranberry bog ponds are seldom-fished gems that can be an ice fisherman’s best friend. Robin also recommends Uncus Lake for trout, New Pond in Walpole for pike and Ponkapoag for pickerel and bass.

Laura from Ippi’s in Lynn is offering a quick-turnaround auger blade-sharpening service at the shop. She’s also offering bait to the tune of 50 pounds worth this weekend for the crappie fishing at Pillings Pond, the mixed bag at Sluice as well as the bass and panfish at Browns Pond. The shop is sponsoring two derbies on February 2nd and the 16th and you can sign up on her Facebook Page or at the shop.

Jim from JCB Bait in Cheshire is beginning to see that most wonderful of sights on Cheshire Lake – shanties! There have even been trucks observed driving the shoreline of some of the water bodies so you know that they have plenty of ice out west. Best bets are Pontoosuc, Onota and Cheshire – all three of which no doubt harbor toothies between 25 and 30 pounds! Jim’s tip is to target weedline edges; for a hint of where they may be, check out the pond charts on Masswildlife’s website and look for contour lines close to shore.

New Hampshire and Southern Maine Fishing Report

Chad from Dover Marine told me that it lately has been all about the “W’s.” Winnipesauke has ice -ishing activity on the big bays such as Alton and Wolf borough and the bite is lakers by day, cusk by night. Wentworth has been good for rainbows and white perch. When you have that combination of white perch and trout, rest assured the bigger trout will be shadowing white perch fry schools, which are often belly down to deep water (30-feet plus). Willand continues to please with good panfishing and occasionally a 4-pound plus largemouth to make things really interesting.

Jason of Suds ‘N Soda said that Great Bay is sporting 12 inches of ice! Smelt seekers should target the channels, which have just now become fishable. Some smelt have been taken off River Road in Chatham. If you’re looking for a place to park, Lenny Thomas owns a lot and for a few bucks allows shanty owners to park, and he’s at 375 Newington Road in Newington. The “Moat” on the Lamprey River has good ice and good crappie and largemouth bass fishing with the errant trout pulling a surprise.

According to Peter from Saco Bay Tackle all the smelt camps on Merrymeeting Bay/Kennebec River are open for business and the bite has been best on an outgoing tide. The books are filling up fast, here’s the link for all you need to know: Recreational smelt camps. Brook trout fishing is at its best right now thanks to recent stockings intended for ice fishermen. Peter recommends Kennebunk Pond as well as Ossipee Lake. For bass and other warm-water species, you could do a lot worse than Great East Pond.

Dylan from Dag’s in Auburn painted a typical scene for me about Lake Sabattus: 6 guys and 200 pike! Now, what are you doing this weekend? It’s a big place but the northern end is a flooded stump field and that third of the water body is where the water wolves hunt! In addition to the 28-pound pike taken out of the Andro, there have been numerous fish between 20 and 26 pounds! File this one away for February: Roche Pond, which is next to Moosehead, will be open for ice fishing during the month of February for the first time in memory and the place teems with brook trout, which you can keep, and salmon, which must be released!

Best Bets for the Weekend

Find a bog pond with safe ice, whether it is in Duxbury, Scituate or Foxborough, and you’re likely to be chasing flags all day! For pike, check out Cheshire Reservoir, Pontoosuc or the Oxbow. The latter, thanks to its connection to the Connecticut River, also has everything from bowfin to channel cats to walleye. Closer to the coast, give Horn a go in Woburn for a rainbow trout; the same could be said for Sluice Pond. In the Granite State the game is Great Bay smelt as well as cusk and lakers from Winnipesauke. And if you have a taste for a toothy, check out Lake Sabattus which is the antidote for the slow pike days blues.