Massachusetts Fishing Report – February 23, 2017

Pictured above: Justyn Tworig with his derby winning 20-pound, 7-ounce pike which he released.

Despite the spring-like temperatures, the snowfall from last week is protecting ice out west like a suit of armor. While standing on a block of ice while wearing little more than a sweatshirt is nice for some, others are dying to reconnect with their casting muscles. The “best bet remedy” for those anglers are South Shore water bodies with a lively shiner!

Hardwater Hanging On

The word “clutch” is reserved for dogged performers executing in the throes of pressure which crushes most. That term would be an apt description of the feat Justyn Tworig pulled off last weekend during the Cheshire Rod and Gun club ice fishing tournament. For pike enthusiasts 20 pounds is the benchmark separating a good fish from a great fish. Justyn’s first place 20-pound, 7-ounce northern was one great fish! Longterm Cheshire Reservoir watchers cannot recall a bigger toothy ever coming out of that sprawling pike factory. What’s also neat is that Justyn is the son of Jim from JCB who provides invaluable input on the goings on out west for this forecast. And if you’re wondering what Justyn did with the trophy: without hesitation, he released it to make other pike! With ice disappearing faster than naysayers arguments against TB12 being the GOAT, there is still safe ice out there but the question is, for how long?

Rod from Flagg’s in Orange told me that ice fishermen still have game in the Connecticut Valley Region. In fact, there are several derbies planned in these parts this weekend, including one at Lake Ellis. Check in with Rod for the details. North Spectacle continues to be special for crappie along with largemouth bass. And as spotlighted as Clubhouse, Moore’s and Mattawa have been in this report, anglers are still finding willing trout! Just Wednesday morning Rodney spotted a group out on Rohunta even though it was mid-week.

Apparently Murphy’s Law applies to the Wachusett area according to Eddie of B&A in West Boylston. For the majority of the winter, the ‘Chu was wide open and now with little more than a month to go before opening day, the reservoir has locked up from Thomas Basin through Cemetery Island – yikes! Of course, there’s no reason to panic since we have all of March to rely on for ice melting, but an open Wachusett makes for some welcome late-winter day-dreaming! A few folks are picking up worms and poking around pools in open-season stretches of the Stillwater and Quinapoxet in the hopes of catching a wild brookie or holdover brown trout or rainbow.

Open water options

Slowly but surely the other shops which are so essential to the success of this forecast are stirring to life! Pete from Belsan’s Bait has been peddling shiners to patrons putting in time at Plymouth ponds. They are catching open water trout from Little and Long Ponds and Pete has a hunch Lout Pond may be open too! Maria from Fore River said that they are selling shiners for those targeting lethargic largemouth and holdover trout on the South Shore and The Cape. Soon those fish will be joined by freshly stocked rainbows, brookies and brown trout. I hope next week to have a few tantalizing details on the imminent stockings.

Tomo from Tomo’s Tackle told me of some exciting new gear that he is displaying in his shop in Salem. He’s especially amped about the new 2-ounce Yo-Zuri Mag Darter. If you’re among the striper-obsessed and you’re not familiar with this favorite, then you’re fishing with a handicap. The only rub regarding this staple has been that it topped out at one ounce – no more! The 2 ounce is just the ticket for those heaving a large stick and targeting big bass!

Berkshires Report From Paul K Tawczynski of chartertheberkshires.com:
Well the thaw is here and all that snow last week is turning into some crazy slush on top of the ice. I have fished several lakes where the slush comes up past the midway point of my boot!. As for the actual ice it is going to vary quite a bit from lake to lake. There are still some bodies of water that are safe enough for ATV travel, but you need to be EXTREMELY careful not just on the ice, but around shore and getting back off the ice when you leave. The biggest tip I can give anyone venturing out to the Berkshires to fish is to check for yourself and check often. I have seen different ice fishing forums online where people were giving ice information that was days or weeks old, and that is dangerous this time of year, the ice changes from morning to afternoon, let alone day to day.

That being said, the Trout bite has really picked back up again with many rainbows being taken again after the blanket of snow insulated the ice. Traditional wisdom says 1-3 feet under the ice, but on a recent trip I had my clients catching beautiful fish about 10-15 feet under the ice in 40-45 feet of water. This super hot weather will change the water column and the fish will adjust.

Pike fishing will peak soon, lets just hope the ice holds out long enough for a few more big fish to get landed. Males are taking over and it is making a challenge to get to the Big females, especially after a day of heavy fishing pressure. Don’t be afraid to look deeper, despite the conventional thinking. My largest three pike over the past two weeks have come in 13, 15, and 22 feet of water and I attribute that mostly to the number of guys fishing the shallower water.

Panfish remain plentiful and willing with and big slob perch starting to appear with regularity again in the shallow water. 12-14″ fish are coming out and hitting shiners, as well as performing for the jig anglers.

No matter what you are fishing for, Be careful out there. Bring your Nebulus if you have one (WE ALL SHOULD), at the very least be wearing your pics and bring a throw rope!

Massachusetts Fishing Forecast

If you pay close attention to a pond or lake, then this year has been one of the best studies of the insulating properties of snow. Out west aside, hardwater opportunities in the Bay State have been next to nothing. But the intermittent spates of sub-freezing temperatures we had a few weeks ago, combined with the incessant snowfall, locked up most water bodies with the snowfall acting like a blanket of protection. Most areas have had unsafe ice, but ice nevertheless, thereby thwarting open water possibilities. You could call it the worst of all scenarios, but beginning on the South Shore, junk ice is giving up the ghost! Plymouth alone has over 300 reasons to explore open-water possibilities. If you are still yearning for more ice fishing, then check out what’s still available from the Connecticut Valley Region through the western part of the state; who knows, it could be you in next weeks featured picture with a big northern!