Region A- Southwestern Maine

As the fishing season transitions from spring to summer, most of the popular sport fish like salmon, trout and bass (particularly smallmouths) spend increasing amounts of time in deeper water, where cooler more desirable temperatures occur.

For example, many of the recent angler reports indicate smallmouths have completed their inshore spawning and have moved from 2 to 6 feet of water to slightly deeper water in the 10 to 15 foot range. Salmon and trout (browns & rainbows) can still be caught on top early in the morning, but are generally found lower in the water column in the 15 to 30 foot zone; those fishing lead core line are typically running three to five colors at this time of the year.

Lake trout, which prefer the coolest water of all the salmonids have largely settled in deeper areas near bottom, but do make some upward feeding forays.

Successful togue anglers on Sebago are picking up good numbers of fish in the 60 to 80 foot range, often “tapping” their terminal tackle along the forgiving sandy bottom to create a physical disturbance that seems to encourage feeding behavior.

Whereas on Thompson Lake, at least for the next couple of weeks, togue may be taken suspended in 15 to 30 feet of water during the early morning hours. On Thompson, it helps that the togue suspend off bottom, because the bottom on this lake is filled with rocks and boulders, and can be tough on terminal gear. Generally with lake trout, whether its spring or summer fishing, terminal tackle should be fished very slowly (1 mph) for best success. Whereas other salmonids may be fished successfully at higher headway speeds (2 – 3 mph or more), which offer the added benefit of being able to cover more fishing area.

Many anglers seem to stop fishing once the surface waters warm up, but the ones that are aware of these seasonal changes and make the necessary adjustments are very successful.

As a point of interest, this spring I have received way more inquiries from residents as well as folks interested in visiting Maine for bass fishing, compared to those who expressed interest in fishing for trout and salmon.

This apparent growing interest in bass fishing was also noted when we reviewed our angling use trend data for Mousam Lake in Shapleigh, which supports coldwater fisheries for salmon, brown trout, lake trout and brook trout, as well as bass.

We recently received another report of yet another illegal introduction of what are reported to be landlocked alewives in Norway Lake (Norway). This represents the third illegal introduction of landlocked alewives in Region A in the last couple years; the other two are Pleasant Lake (Casco) and Raymond Pond (Raymond).

The department’s current policy on forage fish introductions precludes the stocking alewives by the department due to concerns of adverse impacts with established fisheries. Norway Lake is scheduled to receive rainbow trout this fall and the current strain of rainbow feeds heavily on plankton, which is also the primarily forage utilized by alewives, so some interactions may result.

For more outdoor information and sporting licenses 24 hours a day, seven days a week, please visit www.mefishwildlife.com.

To record information about your fishing trip and help manage Maine’s freshwater fisheries, please visit our online fishing logbook at www.triptracks.com

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