Rivers are still running the hottest with herring the attractant for stripers up to slot size. While mackerel are becoming more prevalent, in Maine some are swapping to the more reliable harbor pollock hoping that a substantial meal will attract a substantial striped bass!
New Hampshire Fishing Report
With all the wind I wasn’t expecting much of a first-hand report from Captain Jon Tregea of Sea Run Charters but he surprised me with angling anecdotes. Apparently, where there’s a will there’s always a lie even among the nasties in the Piscatagua River. Fishing for striped bass has been red hot with no shortage of blitzes up and down the watershed. The better-sized fish can be found in tight to the surface action especially in the Portsmouth portion of the Piscatagua. While some of the fish are so tiny they wouldn’t even pass for a respectable white perch there are bigger bass out there including a 41” fish which was taken in Rye. Mackerel are spotty with the bait or bust brigade using pollock as a substitute! Good offering choices are white or pearl Albie Snax, bucktails or Deceivers.
Joe form Granite State Rod and Reel Repair told me that he and his grandson Trevor have been into a pretty good striper bite of fish in the 27/28” bracket on the Salisbury side of the Merrimack River. Savage Sand Eels, Saltwater Zara Spooks and Bomber Badonk-A-Donks have all been working. Regarding freshwater, the Nashua River has been fishing good for largemouth bass while the smallie action is stellar in Squam and Newfound Lakes. Beaver Lake is a good choice for white perch and crappie with Rooster Tails doing the trick for both. For trout there are a few brown and brook trout still in the Nissitissit River. The hot bait there is Berkeley Gulp trout worms.
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Southern Maine Fishng Report
As hoped for from Captain Lou Tirado of Diamond Pass Outfitters a push of the “next size” class of fish – 5 year old, mid-20” stripers – have arrived. Along with them have come a bunch of baby bass (10”!). Rivers are full of alewives and Brit herring making the rivers your best option for catching something bigger. The flats are holding fish too but with the predominate bait source sand eels, slim-profiled lures and flies are fishing best. Mackerel can be found in the bays with the occasional nicer striper but a consistent pattern has yet to develop with the mackerel. For colors the captain has been doing best with bone/ white first choice and chartreuse the runner up.
According to Brandy from Webhannet Bait and Tackle/Boatyard there is a definite spike in flounder numbers this year. Ordinarily a bycatch, anglers are starting to target them in the Webhannet River, Mousam River, York River and there are reports from Rye Harbor. This parallels what Massachusetts anglers are experiencing this year and most are attributing it to less commercial netting. Mackerel remain spotty with those searching for live bait substituting harbor pollock, which are plentiful in Cape Porpoise, for the macks. While lures are working well for the micro to slot fish which are most common, the bigger bass seem to be caught on clams. Haddock have moved off to deeper water with the 250’ depths of Jeffrey’s Ledge fishing best just beware if you choose bait, the dogs are already out in force!
Zach from Saco Bay told me that the rivers such as the Saco, Spurwink and York are holding the most stripers still with beaches/rocky shorelines just starting to stir. White and yellow Hogy spooks are working best in the morning while jigs/soft plastics are a better choice once the sun’s up.
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New Hampshire And Southern Maine Fishing Forecast
Rivers are the remedy for those looking for a break from the blow as well as a slot fish or bigger bass. The Piscatagua, York, Mousam, Saco and Spurwink rivers are all fishing well. The mouths of those rivers are featuring a flurry of flounder activity as is the case in Rye Harbor and Wells Harbor. Haddock have moved off to deeper water with 250-foot sections of Jeffrey’s fishing best in spite of the unleashing of the dogfish pack!
Please spell Piscataqua River correctly , thanks —