February 2024 New England Fly-Fishing Report

Posted on February 10, 2024 by Lou

Hello everyone,

Mid-January finally brought some wintery weather in the form of snow and cold, but it was interspersed with warmer weather and rain. Bottom Line: Very few lakes and ponds froze enough to be safe for ice-fishing or ice-skating, except in the traditionally coldest climes. Strong currents from all of the continuing rain left inlets and outlets and hundreds of yards of water nearby unfrozen.

The Presumpscot River in late January looked in perfect shape to fish with moderate flow and no ice.

Until you got up north to the Rangeley area and northern New Hampshire and Vermont, there was barely enough snow for skiing or snowmobiling unless snowmaking capabilities could cover the slopes. I managed to X-country for a few days.

Such a strange, non-existent winter. Only four sunny days in January, and I feel temps on many days were running ten degrees above normal. In southern Maine, we used to have double-digit numbers of nights below zero. This year? None. It hardly ever gets into the single digits.

I would predict for everyone a very early ice-out and an early start to fishing season, but can you call it ice-out when many stillwaters didn’t totally freeze? Near me, Dundee Pond only partially froze and North Gorham Pond as I write this is totally open water. A few bays of the major lakes are frozen enough to venture out, but that is it.

North Gorham Pond, an impoundment of the Presumpscot River is entirely open water as I write this because of strong currents from all of the rain.

I did get some ice fishing in, but it wasn’t very good, maybe the fish are confused given the strange weather. I know that turkeys were gobbling, songbirds were singing their spring songs, and male woodpeckers were drilling, marking their territories in late January.

A couple of eagles, photographed at a distance, waiting for me to throw a fish on the ice. They left disappointed.

The Presumpscot River and its impoundments give up a few impressive brown trout every year. My son-in-law and myself have landed three brown trout between 3 and 4 plus pounds over the last several years. A gentlemen ice-fishing one of the impoundments at the beginning of February landed a monster. Why can’t I catch a fish like this ice fishing?

Hard to tell how large this fish is, but a monster for sure.

I am a member of the Sebago Chapter of Trout Unlimited, (sebagotu.org) a fine conservation and outreach organization. We host an Ice-fishing event every year on Chaffin Pond in Windham for families who want to learn about ice fishing. This year the weather was good, pond was frozen, and 70 or so hardy souls turned out. We even caught a few brook trout despite the commotion on the ice. Come join us next year,

A nice brookie caught by a few of the young men attendees.

I am always interested in hearing about your interesting fishing experiences. Email me. louzambello@gmail.com

It’s Fishing Season

Posted on April 19, 2022 by Zambello

First things first: I will be presenting at the Marlborough Flyfishing Show that was postponed from January to this upcoming weekend, April 22, 23, and 24. I have a total of five presentations but only two distinct topics. One presentation is where, and how to catch trophy brook trout and landlocked salmon and patterns to use: Friday at 2, Sat. at 10, and Sun. at 11. The other presentation is tactics, techniques, and patterns for pressured salmonids – those snotty educated fish that seem to be ignoring everything you throw at them: Fri. at 10:30, Sun. at noon. See you there.

It is finally the start of the official season. The month so far has featured regular rain, thank goodness, the last several years started way to dry and we were into drought conditions before we knew it. In Southern Maine and into central New England, stream temperatures have risen from the high 40s into the 50s and while they run high the day after a rain, they seem to return to really nice flows quickly.

In northern New England and the Maine mountains it is still late winter. Ice is still hanging on in the ponds and lakes and there is enough snow to still snowshoe in the woods. It is snowing today and snowed most of last weekend. Woods roads are starting to thaw but not there yet.

My fishing has been primarily local streams, rivers, and ponds and most places haven’t been stocked yet so I am catching holdovers or trying for wild fish – the drought last year probably means less wild fish in small streams. I tried in March and early April for big browns but didn’t connect. I have seen on social media photos of giant pike (44 inches plus) caught on Sebago Lake – going to have to try that next year and definitely trying for pike in the next month. I have never caught one in Maine.

A new favorite early spring stream: Mill Brook.

The headwaters of another local river I like to try in early spring.

Signs of Spring: March 30 Post

Posted on March 31, 2020 by Zambello

Love this time of year when so many creatures feel the strong pull of perpetuating the species. Here are two videos. The first, by my friend, Kevyn Fowler ,shows smelt spawning in a tiny outlet stream. Note the eggs, which will hatch in a few weeks with the emergent fry washing down into the lake before seasonal streams dry up. Near the end of the video, watch the fat brown trout cruise on screen looking to pick off a distracted or injured smelt.

The second video shows newly arrived Merganser ducks with the splendid black-and-white males competing for females to pair off with.

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Fishing Season Begins: Fly-Fishing Report

Posted on March 27, 2020 by Lou

Hello Everyone,

It has obviously been a long time since I have posted. As I am sure most of you have been doing, I have prioritized learning and understanding what has been going on with COVID – 19. After that, I focused on ensuring my extended family was safely situated, my wife and I were stocked with what we needed, and our financial affairs were in order – given the turbulence of the financial markets.

Now it is a waiting game, and since many of us are cooped up at home worried about what the next month will look like, fly fishing is a great diversion – either reading and viewing stuff on line or actually going fishing! I will do my part to provide a diversion by posting as much content as I can over the next few weeks, so check back frequently.

Fishing Report

February and early March continued New England’s warmer-than-normal winter and in southern Maine, rivers and lake margins were free of ice by mid-March. The only snow remaining was in patches in the shade of conifers. The Maine mountains and northern Maine enjoyed winter weather much closer to normal with a few good snows, so a good snow pack remains with lakes and ponds still locked up tight.

This last week, the weather has turned much colder with nights in the mid teens even in southern Maine witha good snowstorm thrown in for good measure, This has delayed ice-out on many water bodies, at least for a little while.

The governor of Maine, Janet Mills, a enthusiastic angler herself, opened up the fishing season one week early, and cooped-up kids, families, and unemployed folks found the nearest open water quickly. Near my home on the upper Presumpscot River, the popular stretches of nearby rivers and ponds looked like a scene from Memorial Day weekend. Of course, with the water temps in the high 30’s, few people connected with fish, but it didn’t really matter. My daughter’s boyfriend, Will, did take a kayak out on North Gorham Pond and landed a 16-inch landlocked salmon.

Don’t forget to follow me on Instagram @mainelyflyfishing

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Late February brought some serious melting

High March sun brings melting.

As the ice melts, it exposes dead fish and the Dundee Pond resident bald eagle finds dinner.

March 27th and cove ice is almost out.

Mud Season?

Posted on March 22, 2019 by Lou

Along the coastal plain of Northern New England, snow is melting and the landscape is more mud brown than white. This is not the case as you move inland and into the mountains where it is snowing today, adding to what is already a high and dense snowpack. If you look at webcams from places like Bosebuck Camps, it looks like midwinter. Future weather is always uncertain, but it looks like ice out is a long way away.

Kennebago Lake Ice Out on May 4 2018

For those of you interested in running into yours truly, I will be selling books at the Sebago Lake Trout Unlimited Banquet tomorrow night .Then Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (March 29, 30, and April 1) is the Maine Sportsman Show in Augusta. I will be at the Maine Sportsman Booth Friday night from 5-7 pm. I am giving presentations (and selling books) each day. My presentation each day is ” 12 Best Flies to Catch Trophy Brook Trout: The times are: Friday at 3:00 pm, Saturday at 1:00 and Sunday at 11:00.
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I have expanded my digital communication efforts and am now on Instagram@mainelyflyfishing. I will try to post an interesting video or photo on as many days as I can.

A reminder: I still need reviews of my new book on Amazon.

Ice Out at Kennebago Lake

Posted on May 5, 2018 by Lou

I am fortunate enough to be up at my camp on Kennebago Lake during ice out, which I believe will be tomorrow although the ice is almost gone from my part, the far northwest corner of the lake. Between snow melt and rain, water is cascading down the hillsides and the lake is up into the bushes. Weird weather. Warm and humid with fog over the cold water, then colder and humid, and then severe thunderstorms with pouring rain. Enjoy the photos.

I also took my first Maine fishing trip of the year to Collyer Brook in Gray, Maine. This year was by my reckoning, my 30th year fishing this local small water and if memory serves, I have never been skunked there in the Spring. I know though that a number of years I only caught one fish, I probably stayed as long as it took to catch one. Usually, Collyer is the place I go for my first trip of the year. This week, the fish were in a real biting mood, sometimes stocked fish are not. I even caught a small wild or holdover trout although I didn’t get a photo.

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Welcome Spring!

Ice Out

Posted on May 6, 2017 by Lou

My email these days is filled with folks asking me fishing questions so for this blog post, I will just answer them!

When was ice-out?

In the Rangeley area, it was within the last seven days, in fact higher elevations ponds still have at least a partial coating of ice. Further south, ice has been out for two weeks or so. However, the water remains cold because of cloudy days and cold nights. Patches of snow still linger in the woods in the Kennebago area.

How is the fishing?

Fishing has been slow because of high and cold water. In fact the lower Mags is running at 2000 cfs versus 350 for most of last year. I don’t know if I remember it being that high . A heavy snowpack melted quickly in Rangeley, followed by occasional rain. This is resulting in the spring run-off being closer to historical norms versus several dry springs over the last five years. While this means a slow start to moving-water fishing, it bodes well for sufficient water flows later in the year and good ground water levels.

Smelt are running in places, but perhaps not yet where water temps are still hovering around 40 degrees. Lake and pond fishing where smelt are running up brooks is where I would want to be fishing.

Does the high water mean that spring runs of salmon will push up rivers such as Kennebago?

Moreover, these effects are nothing as compared to what smoking is doing to your lungs. cheap buy viagra The reason, more often than not, isn’t to deceive their greyandgrey.com tadalafil 40mg partner but for the simple reason that they won’t forget or omit anything. Some common adverse effects reported by people include dizziness, headache, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue, and numbness in feet and hands. greyandgrey.com viagra pfizer prix Metrosexual are not homosexual men but they have related cialis without prescription solutions for women too. Not necessarily. At least in Kennebago, salmon don’t really take advantage of high water flows until temps hit 50 degrees. Hopefully when the river warms up, water flows will still be high.

Do you have any fun fishing photos/stories?

Always. My guiding partner Abby from Kismet Ouftitters has been doing some drift boat guiding in western Mass. and found some really nice brown trout in the Hoosic River.

How is the new book selling?

Very well. We are going to start a second printing soon, which will allow me to update the book a little, correct a few typos and include a few more waters. “Flyfisher’s Guide to New England” can now be found in almost every fly fishing outlet in New England, but it does sell out quickly and doesn’t always find its way back onto the shelves in a timely manner. Remember, you can always purchase the book from me directly, signed of course. Just email me.

Enjoy the beginning of a new fishing season.

Lou

Spring is Sprung

Posted on April 17, 2017 by Lou

First of all, I apologize for the tardy posting of my blog. Giving many fly fishing presentations and two weeks in the Bahamas bonefishing left me swamped. I am sure not a single person is feeling sorry for me.

After my bonefish adventure, I could literally write a book entitled, ” 101 Ways to Lose a Bonefish”, because I experienced them all. I lost fish to barracudas, sharks, mangrove roots, disenigrating reels, snapped backing line, broken fly-line loops, broken hooks, slack line, and fly-line loops around the fly-rod butt, just to name some of the ways. Fortunately for my ego, I did land a few as did my wife, Lindsey, and members of my family. You can see from this photo of my son-in-law and I releasing two fish, how amazingly bonefish blend into their environment. No wonder I can’t see them.

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Stocking will commence in Maine in earnest this week and fishing will improve from there.

Spring Ice Out for Rangeley

Posted on March 26, 2016 by Lou

An increasing number of people are now contacting me asking about my projections for Rangeley ice-out and trying to schedule fishing trips. Here is what I know….or think I know…

Ice is already out in most of New England and already up to central Maine. For most places it is the earliest ever. When I find some relevant articles, I will post links. Ice in more northern Maine locales is still frozen solid and this week ushered in colder weather with snow and night time temps in the teens. If you look at webcams from Moosehead Lake or Bosebuck Camps you can check the status of the ice.
The long-term outlook is for average or below average temps for early April. This may delay ice out and water warm up. However, I am still think ice out will be in mid-April in Rangeley and threaten the all-time record set several years ago. Snow is about gone so the ground will warm up fast and that will raise the ground water temperature.
What does this mean for the fishing? Maine opened the season last week so it means that it is now legal to fish everywhere. I know people are catching trout in small streams. Smelt will run early, once the lake temperatures rise into the low 40’s. Last time the ice went out in mid-April, it took a number of weeks before the smelt ran. But smelt, suckers, black-nose dace, shad, stripers, etc. will all migrate or spawn several weeks early at least.

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Hatches will be early as well but not ridiculously so because the maturation of insects is based on cumulative degree-days of the water over the year. But since water temps have been much warmer than normal since basically last summer, I anticipate early hatches, certainly by a week or two.
Sporting Camps such as Grants are opening up earlier than usual.
Lakes and Ponds that are stocked heavily for the ice-fishing crowd will have plenty of fish to be caught in early spring because the ice-fishing season was so short or non-existent, so try places like Crystal Lake in Gray, Maine. Just to name one.

Ice-out finally and other news

Posted on May 11, 2015 by Lou

Ice-out is official. For all practical purposes, ice was almost all gone on Rangeley, Mooselookmeguntic, and Kennebago on May 6th or 7th.

I was guiding on Wednesday and didn’t see too many signs of smelt however. Water temps were below 40 on the Rangeley River in the morning but with air temps approaching 80 degrees in the afternoon, water temps were 43 on the Rangeley and Magalloway Rivers by afternoon. By the time you are reading this, I am sure the fishing has picked up.

Everyone anticipated potential flooding from the snowmelt but with little rain falling in the last two months, it didn’t happen. Now with the lakes low, dam operators are trying to refill them and some river levels are low. It is hard to believe given the amount of snow that we had. Mooselookmeguntic Lake is at least four feet low, but maybe this is intentional due to the Upper Dam work being done. This will limit fishing opportunities on the Rangeley River if it stays at that level.

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Brian, owner of Pheasant Tail Tours (www.pheasanttailtours.com) and Harry, owner of Berkshire Rivers Fly Fishing (www.berkshireriversflyfishing.com) have introduced me to Massachusetts fly fishing. People from northern New England don’t think about going to Massachusetts to fish, but that is a mistake. Mass. rivers fish better early and late in the season then more northern climes and you can extend your season.

The Deerfield River is a great river to float for rainbows and browns, and the Hoosic and Housatonic Rivers are being rediscovered for their very nice brown trout fishing. There are other options as well and Brian and Harry can take you there on either wading or float trips. I have been enjoying my time fishing in Massachusetts – you don’t get a lot of chances at holdover brown trout or rainbows in Maine.

Mainely Fly Fishing Blog

Fishing report from the Western Maine Mountains and Beyond

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