While this is the last weekend for ice fishing Lake Winnipesaukee and many other water bodies in New Hampshire, Maine has the remedy for those who aren’t quite ready to mothball their traps—namely, an ice fishing season extension! The timing for that couldn’t be better as trophy togue are on a tear!
New Hampshire Fishing Report
Harold from AJs in Meredith said that the best bite on Lake Winnipesaukee, as the season draws to a close on this Sunday, March 31st, is the laker and cusk catch in Winter Harbor and Center Harbor. Strangely the white perch have done a disappearing act but rainbows in close are making up for it with fat fish, up to nearly 4 pounds, cooperating. When asked for early season open water possibilities, Harold suggested the upper end of Winnisquam and Belmont Beach as well as Opechee Lake. With up to 22 inches of ice throughout much of Winnipesaukee, it’ll be a while before there is any open water there! Joe from Granite State Rod and Reel Repair said that some are catching bass from Round Pond already as that place opens up. Sandy Pond has lost the ice and Mill Pond is expected to follow suit by this weekend. Shiners floated for bass by the coves and falls of the Nashua River are a slam dunk for action but many are also finding fish with a jig/pig! The white perch run has begun in the Squamscott River!
Southern Maine Fishing Report
The most exciting news regarding ice fishing in Maine is that authorities have extended the season this year to April 21st in Northern Maine! Southern Maine already is open to ice fishing all year but due to an unusually cold March, the season has been prolonged elsewhere in the state.
According to Scotty of Dag’s that’s good news since a number of monstrous lake trout have been caught within the last two weeks! The talk is not just of double digit togue but 20-pound fish which are nearly 40 inches in length.
Don’t fret if you can’t find bait big enough to tempt a titanic togue such as this, some of the most skilled anglers are reeling them in with a jig! With the extended season, you’re chances may never be better to catch that trophy togue! For big fish such as this, you’d be wise to focus on big water! Sebago, Moosehead, East Grand, West Grand, Chesuncook and Pemadumcook are all big league water bodies which hold large lakers!
For local rainbows, Scotty suggests you target run-offs/inlets of the Range Lakes. As for bait, it’s hard to top good old garden hackle! Wayne from Sebago Bait said that this will be his last weekend to sell bait until next winter, but by all accounts Sebago is going out with a bang with news of big lake trout an almost common occurrence. His suggestion for a swan song trip to Sebago: The Station area with an Aeroplane Jig!
Fishing Forecast for New Hampshire and Maine
As the hardwater door closes for much of New Hampshire, bass in the Nashua River as well a white perch in the Squamscott River offer exciting open water options now. However, if you’re not ready to quit the ice fishing addiction, then Maine has your back in the form of an April season extension and trophy togue to boot!
Hello?
Another year with New Hampshire reports mostly absent.
Do you people know that there are five other five other New England states besides Massachusetts?
It is almost May 1 and the latest report from New Hampshire is dated March 28. Way to go!
This Saturday ( April 27) is opening day in NH for waterbodies managed for trout… guess that’s not noteworthy, though…
I wonder if the salmon fishing is hot in Meredith bay right now? Bet shallow water Smallie fishing is picking up in places. I wonder where? Any river action going on yet? It would be nice to get some info.ANY INFO. Oh where, oh where have our fishing reports gone? Oh where, oh where can they be?
Why have there been no reports for ME, NH or VT since March 28? Come on this is ridiculous…you are aware that there are many anglers in all three of the states I listed above?
Why have there been no reports for ME, NH or VT since March 28? Come on this is ridiculous…you are aware that there are many anglers in all three of the states I listed above
This is ridiculous! This happened last fall, too. What kind of lame excuse will they have if and when the supposed writer ever shows up again? There is no excuse for this at all.
If any of us took such a sabbatical from work or, any of our responsibilities, we would be shown the door and told to never come back. In the military it is know as abandoning your post or going AWOL.
Maybe it is time to find someone new to run this section of the site. Someone who will not use all kinds of secret code words. The person who did write this wasn’t exactly gifted, to say the least. I’ve read better copy from 9th graders!
This is certainly not making this publication look very professional.
u should go for the job Steve