New Hampshire, Maine & Vermont Fishing Report – August 11, 2016

Pictured above: Chuck Fritz with a 30″ Piscataqua bass he caught on a 6″ paddletail shad.

Bigger bass have taken up residence, but they seem to be bunched up at the mouth of the Piscataqua River. When found, however, the action can be topwater-explosive! Groundfishing is a game of hide and seek. Anglers seek out the cod and haddock and attempt to hide from the dogs.

New Hampshire Fishing Report

Rick from Suds ‘N Soda said that bigger bass have slipped quietly among the New Hampshire coastline. Pogies in Portsmouth have been the ticket to stripers up to 43 pounds! He’s also been hearing of pogies and big bass in the Kittery area. Warmer water temperatures have caused an exodus of the inner Piscataqua River/Great Bay area making the swath between Little Bay at the mouth of the Piscataqua the most prolific. Macks are spotty but when found are huge! Squid remain plentiful throughout the River and the flounder are still hanging in there at Rye and Hampton harbors.

As alluring as the saltwater scuttlebutt has been, Rick said he couldn’t resist a fresh invite from his friend Tim Moore. On Thursday he’d be out jigging up those deep-water lakers from Winnipesauke that are hitting really well. When not indulging in the laker action, Tim has been cruising in his kayak with his buddy Chuck and they’ve been having luck with 30-inch-plus Piscataqua stripers on topwater lures. The bite seems to improve the nearer you get to the mouth of the river.

Chad from Dover Marine has a panacea for the hot, humid, hazy crazies – fish at night! Throw in the fact that bass feed better and you have good reason to adjust your schedule. He’s been hearing favorable reports from Chauncy Creek, Spruce Creek as well as more northern beaches such as Parsons and Wells.

Southern Maine Fishing Report

Peter from Saco Bay said the flounder good times continue with the best action off jetties that border beaches. The fish gather at the edges of the rock/soft bottom and will hit sandworms but also clams. Fortune Rock has been hot according to Peter, especially during nighttime high tides for those casting eels. Striper Maniac Danny plugs have been accounting for some of the better bass. Sharpies are hitting inlets during outgoing nighttime tides when these big wallowing plugs send out distress signals big bass can’t resist. Scarborough Marsh and Spurwink River have been two hot spots. York Beach has at times seemed to be wall-to-wall pogies. My friend Carl is vacationing there and has witnessed the pogies getting rushed just out of casting range by some unforeseen adversary. Biddeford Pool has been productive for bass with sandworms working best. Groundfishing on Jeffreys Ledge continues to be great but you have to keep on the move to both find the cod and haddock and avoid the dogs.

Brandy from Webhannet relayed to me an awesome groundfishing excursion her husband Scott made with three other chums. It sounded like a mix of pleasure and pain however as these guys hauled in consistent cod up to 35” and pollock up to 40” from 300 feet of water in Northern Jeffreys! Jigs with bright green, pink and the shop’s signature color – teal with silver flash – were the wares which worked. She did get word of a 35-pound striper that slammed a mackerel in the Piscataqua River. Locally a 35” blue slammed a mackerel SP Minnow at the mouth of the Mousam River. There have been plenty of stripers just shy of keeper-size of Moody Beach on the incoming tide.

New Hampshire, Maine & Vermont Fishing Forecast

You may have to chum, you may have to troll, but fish up to 35 pounds are being taken in the Piscataqua River thanks to live mackerel. Drop a Danny plug on a nighttime outgoing tide where inlets drain in the Scarborough Marsh area and odds are you won’t have to measure a caught fish to see if it’s a keeper. Dropping a jig 300 feet down on northern Jeffreys should accomplish two things: you’ll catch nice cod and pollock and you’ll sleep really soundly that night!