Massachusetts Fishing Report – April 28, 2016

For many, it’s time to reset the default passion to striped bass…because they’re here! If you can refrain just a bit from obsessing exclusively over things with seven stripes, the harbor is registering upper 40-degree water temperatures, and not surprisingly the flounder are beginning to cooperate. It is still April however, which traditionally for New Englanders means trout, and there’s news of far more than just stockies.

It’s not every year that we are inundated with schoolies in April, but this is one of those rare years. A pal and I were talking about “non-winters” such as this past one and what our experiences were in that era. Prior to the river herring moratorium, we almost never fished in rivers and estuaries and instead topped off our “baitwells on wheels” with herring and stormed the beaches. River herring were like heat-seeking missiles for all things striper and a slam-dunk indicator whether fish were there or not. And more often than not, our first fish were not schoolies but pretty substantial fish: 15- to 20-pounders, and we caught as early as May 4! The last time I checked, that date’s coming up next week!

Because we were so dependent on live bait — from river herring through July to pogies until late October — we couldn’t cast a plug through wet tissue paper. When we tried to catch fish that were committing suicide on the herring, our feeble plug attempts produced next to nothing. In addition to being “artificially-challenged,” another mistake is that we were trying to dupe those fish during the day when the keen-eyed stripers could clearly see that the impostors were not herring. But, in recent years, I’ve learned of a new breed of beach sharpies who have been catching those same class of fish we caught back in the day on herring, but they are doing it with plugs and at night!

Running parallel and in many cases topping our surf success was a clandestine boater I’ve gotten to know through the years who prefers anonymity above all and relishes catching bigger early-season fish in Boston Harbor than they are catching on the Cape. He pays rapt attention to catch reports down south, and more often than not he’s hoisting a 30-pounder over his gunwale in the harbor before there are similar-sized fish being taken there!

What those surf studs and this big bass boater have in common is that they are fishing at dark and using time-tested big bass baits. Whether by boat of by boot, consider for your arsenal a big spook such as the 247 Lures Molly or RM Smith Jackhammer, along with a big metal-lip such as a GRS Pike. Contemplate the Sebile dynamic duo – the Magic Swimmer and Stick Shadd – along with Finish-style minnow plugs such as loaded Cotton Cordell Red Fins, Yo-Zuri Crystal Minnows, and Daiwa SP Minnows. A proper surf bag would be lacking without a solid selection of jighead/plastic jerkbait combinations as well.

There will be a lot of anglers catching schoolies for the foreseeable future, but a few will pass for the lonely pursuit and the possibility of an early-season cow… it’s your call!

Pete Belsan of Belsan Bait in Scitute said that life on the South Shore is good, with shad in the Indian Head River and schoolies swarming throughout Scituate Harbor. The stripers are small—in fact it’s hard to say which is bigger on average: the shad or the bass! Schoolies can also be found in Pymouth Bay, Kingston Bay, and Duxbury Bay as well as the South and North rivers. Considering that latest reports have similar-sized fish all the way into Swampscott, odds are good that you should have no problem finding schoolies this weekend. Treat those future fifty-pounders with respect and opt for lures with single hooks and crush down those barbs! A few flounder have been found foraging in Green Harbor and Scituate Harbor. Two potential shore spots are Cedar Point as well as the surf wall off Peggotty Beach.

Lisa from Fore River in Quincy said that the few who have been out are finding biting bass and blackback flounder. The schoolies have been found in the Weir River, Weymouth Back, and Neponset rivers. No-one is talking in terms of limits of flounder yet, but I have heard of 6-fish outings in Quincy Bay. I’ll be able to weigh in on local flounder conditions personally tomorrow as I’m finally getting out there with Captain Jason Colby. It’s no exaggeration that folks who have been at this thing a while anticipate hooking that first blackback of the year as much as any fish that swims! I’ll also be on the lookout for surface feeds and I wouldn’t be surprised if we see busting bass!

Greater Boston is not immune to the schoolie invasion. Look for them where Black Creek empties into Wollaston Beach, the mouth of the Charles River and most anywhere in the Mystic River from the Amelia Earhart Dam out to the Shrafft Center. Other safe bets are the Lynn Harbor, the Pines River, Saugus River and Red Rock off Lynn Beach.

Noel from Bridge Street Sports has a patron who recently caught 3 flounder and 8 fresh schoolies off Fisherman’s Beach in Swampscott! These 15” fish are on the move and should be pushing their way as far up as Plum Island any day! Regarding Plum Island, shad are now being caught regularly from Rocks Village all the way up to the Lawrence Dam.

What I was particularly pleased to hear of from Martha of Surfland is that anglers are catching a few salter white perch from the Parker and Mill rivers. A generation ago the Parker River was a place of legend. Holdover stripers, sea run brown trout and white perch helped make this place unique. Just maybe at least one of those fisheries is on the rebound!

While a multi-species angler, odds are that Russ Eastman of Monahan Marine in Weymouth prefers brown trout above all. For proof, one needs to look no farther than the brown trout tattoo he sports. Russ’ favorite brown trout honey hole is Massachusetts only designated trophy brown trout water – South Pond in the Sturbridge/E. Brookfield area. Lately Russ has been targeting this place at dusk and owing to the brown trout’s well-deserved reputation as a nighttime marauder, he’s been catching bigger browns. He keeps it simple by trolling shiners but he employs a few special tweaks. While most opt for small shiners for trout, for big predaceous brown trout Russ chooses large shiners. Sonar is a must and if you pay attention you’ll often notice the trout shadowing the bait but not striking. When this happens, Russ “punches” those reluctant fish in the face by free-spooling the shiner right in front of them. Try it, those trout cannot resist this method!

Better late than never could be the theme of Wachusset Reservoir as 3- to 4-pound lake trout have become more willing to hit bait and especially lures. We have been doing really well with red and gold 5/8-ounce Krocodiles. I smudge a bit of BioEdge Smelt Wand on the lures and find that it makes a big difference. While crappie is hardly king of the reservoir there have been a number of 2-pound slabs weighed in at B&A in West Boylston. Eddie suggests the Stillwater Basin and Thomas Basin as best bets for big crappie. As big as the ‘Chu is, it is dwarfed by Quabbin Reservoir. And some of the salmon catches are living up to that bigger status.

It was good to hear from Rodney of Flagg’s Fly and Tackle who is feeling better and is back at the helm of his shop in Orange. The timing for this is perfect because the salmon seem to be bigger this year thanks to a surge in smelt numbers. Encouraging news is tricking in from Gates 8, 31 and 43. Rod is an extraordinary fly tier and his streamers are hard to tops when it comes to salmon. Rod suggests the Winnie Squid, Red Smelt, Gray Ghost and his signature Quabbin Sunrise. You’ll fare better if you employ a 6-pound fluorocarbon leader of about 30 feet and slather that streamer with BioEdge Smelt Wand! Rod recommends the Baffle Dam as one of the hottest salmon spots. My friend “Sully” sent me a picture of a beautiful 5-pound-plus landlocked that crushed a DB Smelt knock-off by the Gate 8 area. Sully is seasoned Quabbin salmon slayer and he is seeing better salmon than in years. Not surprisingly Sully gives his spoons the BioEdge advantage, this stuff works big time! For shore fishermen there are willing 16” plus rainbows to be caught at all of the boat ramps and lakers are hitting well from the shore of Gate 35.

Massachusetts Fishing Forecast

Well…they’re here! Swarms of schoolies are cruising into rivers, estuaries and marshes all along the bay state. Odds are if you’re not finding them yet, keep casting they’re probably but a tide away. While upstream is the domain of the schoolie, once you get your fill try toeing the beach surf a bit for far bigger! White Horse Beach, Humarock Beach and Nantasket Beach are good bets on the South Shore. Closer to Boston, check out Wollaston, Yirrell, Winthrop and Revere Beach. Plum Island fans should start their pilgrimages at the mouth of the Merrimack on outgoing tides – that’s a tinder box ready to go off at any moment. Flounder fans are finally finding their favorite flatfish off Quincy Bay and off Deer Island. Some however are appreciating the fact that it is still only April and trout sweetwater in South Pond, Wachusett Reservoir and Quabbin Reservoir is living up to its namesake!