Massachusetts Fishing Report - December 10, 2015

Those who prefer their Decembers on ice are viewing the weather forecast with all the anticipation of a root canal.  But something can be said for casting to rising trout in mid-December while wearing little more than a sweatshirt. The saltiest of anglers, however, are still catching smelt and mackerel!

Rod from Arlington B&T said that his shop, full of premium ice fishing gear, is smacking of irony as patrons come into the shop looking for open water goodies to be used in 60-degree weather! Considering some of the brown trout anglers are still catching from Walden and White’s in Concord just maybe the hardwater can wait. Horn Pond has been hot by the Flag Pole and the Culvert. The latter has featured rising trout sipping hatches from the surface of the water, something you don’t see every day in December!  Some have also been floating shiners or casting Finnish minnow-type lures and catching white perch by the spillway on the Lower Mystic Lake as well as the Tufts Boathouse.

The South Shore has some spots brimming with nice black bass. Pete of Belsan’s in Scituate told me that the bogs in Norwell are underappreciated largemouth bass lairs and they also offer good yellow perch and pickerel action. Don’t neglect Pitts Pond (Haverly) in Scituate or Lilly in Cohasset. You can get fairly fancy with your offering or you can just do what some of the better anglers opt for this time of the year and go live with a large shiner either under a float or rigged slip-sinker style on the bottom.

If you’re itching to do some South Shore saltwater fishing, there are mackerel just off the coast and on a calm day in reach of a tin boat or other small craft. Just outside of the New Inlet Buoy at the mouth of the North River is a good place to drop a Sabiki Rig. There are also random reports of mackerel just outside of Boston Harbor and up into Cape Ann.  You stand a good chance of catching some smelt from Hull at Pemberton Pier through the A Street Pier. Other options are the Winthrop Public Landing as well as many a marina throughout Winthrop and East Boston you can gain access too. A “free” smelt spot which has been fished for generations is the Belle Isle Creek culvert next to the VFW building in Beachmont. Fore River B&T in Quincy has flash-frozen gills of grass shrimp, but if you’d prefer live, give them a call first to make sure they have them in stock.

In the heart of the Hub is some unique fishing on the Charles River. Consider where the Muddy River dumps into the Charles as well as by the hotwater discharge next to Cambridge Parkway. Everything from drag-pulling carp to white catfish and even holdover striped bass swim in this stretch of the Charles River. Doughballs or corn could catch you a carp while a shiner is fair game for a multitude of species, all the while in the shadows of the spectacular Boston Skyline!

Laura from Ippis in Lynn tipped off my friend Dave Panarello on a trout tweak and it has made a world of a difference. Water temps this time of the year bring trout higher in the water column so try suspending baits off the bottom with a longer leader. She suggests a 3-foot leader with either Power Eggs or a “blown up” crawler. Worm blowers are the perfect tool to inflate worms into the strike zone for trout and white perch at Sluice Pond in Lynn. Spring Pond in Peabody is also a winner for white perch. The shop is carrying frozen grass shrimp and for good reason—smelt are being taken from the Beverly Pier, Congress Street Bridge in Salem and Winthrop.

Noel from Bridge Street in Salem said that he’s still selling Sabiki rigs for those targeting mackerel at the Beverly Pier, Salem Willows as well as in Gloucester Harbor. The fishing season for Wachusett Reservoir may be in the rearview mirror but according to Eddie the crappie fishing from Indian Lake is consoling some. Eddie of B&A in West Boylston said that East Waushacum can be a local winner for white perch as well as smallmouth bass. A few are soaking shiners by the railroad bridge on the Stillwater River for lake trout. A better bet for brown trout is the beach area on Comet off Route 62 in Hubbardston. Small shiners have been the key for fish which have been in the two pound category. Ordinarily the chatter among Flagg’s in Orange in December coincides with the chatter of teeth from anglers venturing out on first ice but that is hardly the case this year. Of course something can be said for wearing little more than a windbreaker and catching white perch from Lake Mattawa. Rod checked in a nicely-hued, hook-jawed 2 ½-pound rainbow trout that took a worm on the bottom from Lake Mattawa. The angler said he did not see a single other soul on the lake. Good reports have been coming in for Queen Lake in Phillipston for white perch and yellow perch. Rod recommends trolling a spinner/worm combination for the panfish. The “Melanson boys” have been doing a number on the Northfield walleye population in the Connecticut River.

Fishing Forecast

Take advantage of this unseasonably warm weather by targeting cooperative white perch, trout and a host of other sweetwater species. Cranberry bogs in Norwell are perfect places to drop a shiner in front of a hungry hawg bass, pickerel or perch. Closer to Boston, the Charles River is one giant fish bowl; corn or doughballs could call in a carp or two from the Cambridge side of the river while shiners may catch you most anything from catfish to holdover stripers. Concord’s Walden and White Ponds have been producing some impressive brown trout. For rainbows check out Sluice Pond in Lynn or Comet Pond in Hubbardston. Smelt remain the best saltwater option with Hull and Winthrop getting the nod as Greater Boston best bets.