With no disrespect to the holidays, with every week bringing bigger bass into the fray – this could very well be best time of the year! Now that pogies have appeared anglers have the right bait to cull out the cows!
New Hampshire Fishing Report
According to Jon Tregea of Sea Run Charters water temperatures have finally edged past 60 degrees and the striper fishing is reflecting it! Mackerel have become more predictable and the New Hampshire coast is swarming with pogies well into Maine. With all that bait and ideal water temperatures drag-pulling bass can now be found throughout the Piscatagua River as well as off the beaches. Jon even saw a video of bluefin busting bunker close to the shoreline! You don’t need a calendar to tell you that summer is officially here!
Christian of Suds ‘N Soda said that the bays – Little Bay and Great Bay – have been best! Most of the stripers now are an interesting mix of sizes with fish up to 30-pounds now being reported. While blitzes in the bay and outside the harbors are common, for a crack at a cow it’s hard to top a live mackerel or pollock at the mouth of the Piscatagua River, especially by Pierce Island. Mackerel are a little deeper than the 2KR Can compared to other seasons. The beach bait soakers are getting bass with the best spots areas which intersect rivers/harbors such as Wallis Sands. While it’s nearly July there are still a few fall-back river herring upstream of Great Bay as well as a few big bass willing to make a snack out of them. Folks are still buying up seaworms so it’s pretty obvious flounder are still around. Target Seabrook, Hampton, Rye and Wentworth Harbors.
Southern Maine Fishng Report
Brandy from Webhannet Bait and Tackle/Noatyard knows of 40-inch stripers now being caught in Maine! While mackerel remain spotty the appearance of bunker has many forgetting about the mackerel, at least for those who target big fish. Some of the places which have been fishing best for boat, kayak and shore are the Mousam River, Ogunquit Beach, York Beach, Colony Beach and Drakes Island. As usual the night brigade will have their way with bigger fish with eels and “blurple” SP Minnows accounting for good fish.
Shad up to 19” in the Saco River have been an exciting light tackle addition. From Captain Lou of Diamond Pass Outfitters comes news of steadily improving fishing! The arrival of pogies will do that most every time and they have arrived in most rivers and along with herring necessitate the need for big presentations such as 7” fluke style soft plastics, Danny swimmers and pencil poppers. Flies that mimic the same big bait are working well also. Flat-cruising, crab-crunching stripers are just the thing for crab patterns! Stripers can also be found off the ledges, feeding on pollock and mackerel. SP Minnows, live pollock, metal lip swimmers and Smack it Poppers are all catching! Most fish are between 20” and 32” with the occasional bigger bass mixed in.
Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont Fishing Forecast
If you’re doing your bass bidding by boat, look for pogy schools which are now in numerous bays throughout New Hampshire and Maine. From shore, the beaches are a best bet, especially those which border harbors. Specific spots which are getting the nod are Pierce Island, Wallis Sands Beach, York Beach and Drakes Island. So what are you doing this weekend?