Massachusetts Fishing Report – January 5, 2017

Now that we have 2017s requisite first (and hopefully infrequent) thaw in our rearview mirror, we can get back to watching Mother Nature get back at the job of making ice. That’s a good thing since there has been no lack of interest. In fact, one harried shop owner said that a local water body looked as if it was in the middle of a tournament.t.

Central Massachusetts Fishing Report

Jim from Barry’s in Worcester, said that pre-thaw anglers were catching a grab bag of warm-water species from A-1, Little Chauncey, Flint Pond and Singletary. Eddie of B&A in West Boylston told me that his customers were heading out of town in search of better ice and potentially better fishing. Dunn Pond in Gardner has been a destination for those looking for trout. Highlights are this place’s potential to holdover brown trout as well as impressive jigging of a variety of panfish especially yellow perch. Another alternative has been Whalom Pond in Lonenborg, which has been known to give up respectable rainbows and brookies during the winter. Closer to the shop is Brigham Pond, where the quarry is pickerel and largemouth bass. Moosehorn Pond is relatively remote, especially considering the county in which it resides and that inaccessibility often results in less crowds and pretty solid warm water species catching.

Massachusetts Connecticut Valley Region Fishing Report

Rod from Flagg’s in Orange said that some regulars are setting their sights on the “setbacks” over the border. Sloughs, coves, oxbows and ponds off the Connecticut River just pass the border in Southern New Hampshire are multi-species fish bowls where pike and walleyes swim. It shouldn’t take you much snooping around in the Hinsdale/Charlestown/Claremont area to find fish. While you’re there you may want to check out Moore Reservoir in Littleton where some ridiculous brown trout and pike have been caught. Locally there are pike and walleye also lurking among the Turner Falls area of the Connecticut River. A few other pike favorites worth considering are The Oxbow in North Hampton, Woods Pond in Lenox-dale and Quaboag Pond. Anglers fishing small shiners and worms in tight among the shoreline of Lake Mattawa are picking up rainbows. Large shiners have been responsible for some big bass from Rohunta.

Western Massachusetts Fishing Report

According to Jim from JCB Bait in Cheshire, pike interest in Cheshire Reservoir has been so high that last weekend it looked as if there were a tournament being held there. Not surprisingly there have been numerous reports of 10- to 15-pound pike from Cheshire as well as Onota, Buell and Pontoosuc. Jim has also been hearing of unconfirmed reports of pike of nearly twice that size! Of course, something can be said about the tranquility and aesthetics of smaller water. Consider Cranberry Pond in Sunderland which is stocked with rainbow and brook trout. Native shiners ensure that the largemouth bass in this place have the potential to grow to trophy size. There’s a lot to love about Leverett Pond in Leverett. The shoreline is an attractive mix of forest and only moderate development. The pond has extensive vegetation where lunkers can lurk unmolested. As proof, Masswildlife Sportfishing Award pins have been awarded here for largemouth bass, pickerel and perch. Ensure that your bait is positioned just above the dense weeds or you’ll tug in nothing but salad.

Berkshires Report From Paul K Tawczynski of chartertheberkshires.com:

The ice formed quickly in the weeks leading up to Christmas, and despite a few warmer days and a few rainy nights held up great. Most lakes at high elevation will see 5-8 inches of black ice under the snow and even many big waters have sold 4-5 now. Same as any year you need to be extremely careful on early ice and spud your way onto new water.

The bite has been very good on the early ice. Big Bull Bluegill are a little behind the Perch right now which are biting extremely aggressively, It is not uncommon to take A 11-12″ yellow perch on a heavy medium shiner on a tip up! However, if you jig, this is prime time for the smaller Marmooska Type Jigs. The three jigs that I absolutely will not leave home without are the red HT Enterprises Tungsten GEM jig, The NilsUSA Hand Poured Tungsten in Firetiger, and the NilsUSA MiniMontti in Firetiger. The Aggressive colors will pay off big time on early ice while the oxygen levels are still high under the fresh ice and the fish still have a strong metabolism. Tip your jig with a wax work or spike for quick action!

Rainbow trout from the fall stocking are easy quarry in any stocked pond. Don’t forget to fish shallow! Whether you are jigging or using tip-ups, if you have enough water to get your bait under the ice, you will find trout. This is a great time of year for Polar Style tip-ups, or Ice-Riggers which can keep your bait high without compromising presentation with a large bulky reel in the strike zone.

Pike are chasing baits aggressively right now and several 20-15 pound class have already been iced and released in just the first few weeks of the year. Although many pike purists would say otherwise, I have had my best luck early season with very lively jumbo shiners. Don’t forget that these apex predators rely keenly on scent / taste when approaching a prospective meal so a good size dab of Liquid Mayhem Pike / Musky attractant seems to help turn lookers into takers, and helps them hold onto even natural baits longer.

Massachusetts Fishing Forecast

Odds are that if the sub-freezing weather continues, there will be viable options closer to the coast, but meanwhile the action remains weighted toward out west. Lake Mattawa has been a good choice for good rainbows. If you’re looking for larger, a big shiner suspended at the edge of a weedline in Rohunta should do the job. If it takes a spool-turning toothy to warm you up, check out the pike fishing in Cheshire Reservoir and Pontoosuc.