March divides ice fishers into two categories: those determined to cling to the last ice flow and then there are the others who about now have experienced frozen finger fatigue! While there is still no shortage of ice out west, the talk by the coast has turned to open water and for many the wait is on for the stocking to begin!
Massachusetts Fishing Report
Some South Shore anglers are beginning the daily vigil of watching the Masswildlife website in anticipation of that first trout stocking! Far be it for me to point anyone out for that, I couldn’t help but notice the words “stocking in southeastern waters is scheduled to start in early March…”, the last time I checked!
Meanwhile according to Belsan Bait and Tackle in Scituate some anglers are not waiting and are finding holdover rainbows and a few browns at Little and Long Ponds in Plymouth. While the ice fishing season was not long it was sufficient to begat stirrings to fish open water so shiner demand is high as anglers target largemouth bass at Widows Walk Golf Course and a mixture of warm water species among such spots as Tack Factory Pond and Old Oaken Bucket Pond.
When I talked to Lisa from Fore River Fishing Tackle in Quincy the conversation drifted towards the prospects of a cod from the shore beginning in April when for two weeks recreational anglers will be able to keep one at a minimum of 21”. Some of the better bets will be behind the Hull High School, Hull Gut, Nut Island, Castle Island and just maybe the new Deer Island Pier. It would have been nice if that 260’ pier was longer and more in line with piers in Florida and California which are in some cases three times as long, but it still gives anglers a chance to possibly catch a cod from shore. We’ll know soon enough. Boaters of course will have infinitely more choices come April.
“Wide open”, is the way Rod from Arlington Bait & Tackle described most water bodies in Greater Boston. That description applies to Spy Pond where pike/tiger muskies swim, Horn Pond where you may catch a fall-stocked trout, pickerel or bass as well as both the Charles and Mystic Rivers which both feature a variety of species almost too large to list.
Eric from Lunkers in Ashland listed Farm Pond and Winthrop Lake as open for warm water species fishing. Walden and White in Concord have mostly shed the ice as well and for those looking to drop in a pram or kayak – PFDs/warm clothing are a must – Fairhaven Bay is a good choice for pike, bass and crappie!
More open water options now exist farther north according to David from Merrimac Sports. Downstream of the Lawrence Dam on the Merrimack River is all open now as well and some anglers are finding the pike “hungry”. Compounding inlets with the main river increases the probability that you’ll have action with the confluences of the Merrimack with the Spicket and Shawsheen especially promising. Lake Attitash has had pockets of water opening up with perch and smallies the big draw there. When asked when the salter white perch on the Exeter/Squamscott Rivers is expected to kick in, David said “soon”! What’s very interesting was that there seemed to be a bump in activity in the long-dormant Parker River perch run last year. Last spring the shop was dolling out a lot of seaworms for anglers fishing that river!
Once again out west is your best bet if you are a died-in-the-wool hardwater junkie. In addition to reports of still-good ice, fishing pressure has hit a late-season wall. Shop owners are saying there are simply fewer anglers taking to the 8-12” of ice many are reporting. Eddie of B&A Bait and Tackle Co. in West Boylston told me that crappie and trout are still being caught from Comet Pond with a few northerns coming out of Newton Pond. The Rutland area still has ice fishing options among them Whitehall Pond and Muddy Pond. At the former you may find trout, while the latter is all warm-water species.
Rod from Flagg’s Fly and Tackle in Orange said that he’s been hearing of big smallmouth bass and yellow perch coming out of Lake Mattawa. Brown and rainbow trout are also a possibility there as is the case with Moores Pond and Sheomet Lake. The latter is one of the last lakes in the Bay State to hold onto hardwater. In fact Rod likes to talk about the year when on the very same day that Quabbin Reservoir opened for business (third Saturday in April) anglers were still ice fishing on Sheomet Lake (Clubhouse Pond)! And there are even reports of walleye hanging in there from hardwater in Barton Cove.
Cheshire Reservoir hasn’t had a fraction of the angling pressure of a couple of weeks ago according to Jim from JCB Bait in Cheshire. Anglers who are still at it aren’t complaining knowing that March is often the most productive time for pike! When asked where he would soak a shiner if if he were seeking his personal best pike, Jim offered the up the north basin! The shop is still carrying shines and suckers for the diehards. The Hilltown ponds still have plenty of ice as well as trout and a pristine environment to fish from.
Massachusetts Fishing Forecast
When the conversation for those still ice fishing is centered around how long of a plank is needed to span open shorelines, it’s time to seek alternatives. Out west we are not there yet, but a week from now it’ll probably be wise to bid adieu to the hardwater season. Fortunately the sound of building ice is ready to be supplanted by the rumble of hatchery trucks as they bring on the trout. Something tells me that all that comes to fruition beginning next week!
God report Ron,Water temps are almost where we need them to be.I was glad to hear that Dave from Merrimack Sports assuring us the river is fishable for the toothy ones. Also a trip north for white perch is a must this spring.