Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont Fishing Report – April 30, 2020

Those who have been able to fight through the chill from the incessant rains and cool weather have been warning up pretty quickly thanks to cooperative landlocked salmon on Winnipesaukee, Squam Lake and Newfound Lake. It’s simply a case of finding the spawning baitfish with suckers now supplanting smelt as the target. While the saltwater season remains in neutral, alewife sightings give hope for the future.

New Hampshire Fishing Report

The word from AJs Bait in Meredith is that the key to finding some of the hottest salmon and rainbow fishing in not only Lake Winnipesaukee but Squam, Newfound Lake and other cold-water lakes is to fish near tributaries where suckers are spawning. Troll live bait, spoons or streamers for the salmon while the trout might be more inclined to gulp down salmon eggs. Recent strong reports have been trickling in from Gilford Bay, Smith Cove, Saunders Bay, Meredith Bay and Alton Bay. You can now expect quantity to go along with the quality of fish as accounts of double-digit salmon outings are becoming more common with purplish spoons such as those made by Top Gun working well.

Chad from Dover Marine said that anglers letting the weather conditions call their shots for them are catching the most consistently. Raw, drizzly days are tops for salmonoids but a definite buzz kill when it comes to black bass. For the latter, seek out sun-swept coves, especially those with compounded structure such as emerging weeds, blowdowns and brush. A soft plastic crawfish imitator crawled along the bottom or a lipless crankbait ripped and dropped through grass should prove too much for “Sally’s and Larry’s” to ignore, providing that water temperatures are rising. For trout, Chad is steering customers towards Lucas Pond and Barbados Pond.

In the past, Joe from Granite State Rod and Reel Repair has told me of the unexpected “trophy” trout which have occasionally been caught in the Nashua River. Since there is no stocking in the Nashua, these fish must be Massachusetts migrants and can usually be found by the dam. One of these wayward trout years ago was a 3 1/2 pound brook trout! “Normal” fare such as black bass have also been stirring throughout the Nashua River as well. Joe has been hearing good things about trout at Beaver Lake, Cobbett’s Pond, and Canobie Lake. Fresh reports of alewives swimming throughout Great Bay are a harbinger of striped things to come and just may wake up local holdovers.

I wasn’t aware that there were holdover stripers big enough in the bay to make a meal out of a river herring but Jason from Suds ‘N Soda in Greenland clued me into this years ago.

There is no news on flounder as of yet but in the past, Hampton Harbor, Rye Harbor and Wentworth Harbor have all been spots where flounder stir on the early side. The haddock haul continues to be hot on top of Jeffrey’s Ledge with the catch shifting towards redfish when anglers target rockier areas.

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Southern Maine Fishng Report

From Dag’s Bait & Sportgoods in Auburn came word that the still chilly water temperatures – mid-40s – on Thompson Lake has been icing the salmon bite. Look for a surge in the catch rate this weekend with the predicted warm spell. When they are fussy it’s best to downsize your leaders and increase their length to as long as 30 feet. The shop is carrying what for salmon is dinner – smelt! Look for the strike zone to be between 10 and 20 feet down.

The stocking trucks have been busy with ongoing stockings of a medley of trout species; if you’re honey hole seemed depleted check it out again, you may find it’s been reloaded with fresh fish!

While the Andro is noted as a Northern pike ice fishing hot spot, honorable mention should go to crappie there. Crappie are evasive and are most active at night, making it a fish which does quite well in a water body dominated by a diurnal predator such as pike.

Not surprisingly there hasn’t been a heck of a lot to report from Webhannet Bait and Tackle/Boatyard with about the only news a pretty good haddock bite in Southern Jeffrey’s when conditions allow. There are also mackerel not far out from Wells Harbor. If last year was an indicator, than plenty of pogies should return again in season and nothing calls in those cows better than a school of pogies. Regarding stripers, schoolies have moved as far north as Boston so they should cross the border into northern New England before you know it!

Want to get in on the bite? Find an OTW-approved Charter Fishing Captain for Maine!

New Hampshire And Southern Maine Fishing Forecast

Like arguably no other time of the year, fishy fortunes in late April are tied directly to water temperatures. The predicted warm-up over the weekend should shove salmon fishing into the stratosphere whether you’re trolling Thompson Lake in Maine or Newfound in New Hampshire. Trolling near tributaries where suckers or even the last of the smelt are preoccupied with spawning is the trick. There still is slim pickings regarding the saltier side of things with finding flounder among New Hampshire harbors a possibility and haddock on top of Jeffrey’s Ledge a probability.