Fishing Report February 24, 2025

Winter is still here in New England, much to the surprise of many. Smelt fishing on rivers in Maine and New Hampshire has been steady. Ice reports just about everywhere have been very good, with a few reporting slushy conditions making traveling a bit tough. ATVs and those on foot might want to check with local bait shops for an idea on slush conditions before heading out. Lakes Winnipesaukee and Sebago have seen a fair amount of fishing effort and some good fishing, but the wind has been slowing down the fishing and amount of people.">

MAINE:
Greg Cutting at Jordan’s Store in Sebago reported that the Sebago tournament was held to Saturday only due to weather. “We’re fishing the Shoals, but I’m not liking this warm weather coming this week. It got a little loose on top yesterday. Hopefully it will hold and the forecast for cooler temps next week holds. The bite was good initially, but it slowed a bit. Cusking has been very good. The biggest I’ve seen is about 8 pounds. They are catching quite a few in the Camel’s Pasture. Anywhere in 8-feet to 20-feet of water in rocky cobble is good right now. One group of guys caught 35 of them. The lake trout have slowed down, but we haven’t been marking much bait. I am hearing that when there is a lot of bait around, the lake trout feeding on them are smaller. 90-feet of water has been good. Thompson has been producing a lot of lake trout as well. Hancock has been fishing well for perch, but the browns haven’t turned on yet. That will happen here pretty soon. Tricky has been giving up some very nice splake, but one day will be amazing and the next will be dead,” he told us.

CJ Harmon of Burnt Meadow Guide Service in Brownfield furnished the following report: “Our week consisted of inconsistency. Grinding for tight lipped fish one day and a hot bite the next. We guided two groups of kids this week and setting our jack traps on weed edges was the ticket to keeping them running, catching largemouth bass and a few nice crappie. The panfish pattern seems to be staying the same with fish holding to the edges of the basins adjacent to shallow flats but with the warmup coming this week we believe we are going to see fish start to feed aggressively and more often. The slush conditions have gotten worse but hopefully with the warmer days the snow will settle and get us back to better conditions for traveling.”

James Eddy Smelt Camps in Dresden told us that they are still fishing and the fishing is mostly good. “The daytime tides have been a little slower, but people are picking up a few. This week we have all daytime tides. The ice is good, but the melting and runoff has probably made the water a little murky. Overall, the fishing has been pretty good,” they told us.

NEW HAMPSHIRE:
Full-time New Hampshire fishing guide Tim from Tim Moore Outdoors/Lake Winnipesaukee Fishing Guide Service reported similar struggles due to windy weather but wasn’t complaining about ice conditions. “The wind really made things tough. It slowed fishing and made being outside difficult for my clients, who mostly prefer to take in the beautiful Lake Winnipesaukee scenery. Add to that the poor job forecasting those winds and I was a bit frustrated. This fishing largely reflected typical windy and sunny weather. It was a bit slower than usual, but we caught fish and had great people. Lake trout and white perch are still cruising, but they seem to be quickly moving along much of the time. Live bait on tip ups has been key. We have been using the Clam Predator tip ups as often as possible. We use them as a hook setting device (which is legal in NH) and people really prefer fighting their fish on a rod versus a regular tip up. Jigs have been getting a few fish, but mostly skinny lake trout and smallmouth. Hopefully a turn in the weather will turn things back on,” he said.

Alan Nute at Winnisquam Country Store in Tilton told us that the wind has hampered efforts a bit, but people are still catching some fish. “It was a little windy, but overall it was a pretty good week. A bucktail jig tipped with sucker meat has been the ticket out here. The ponds have been doing good for bass and pickerel. We also saw some nice cusk this week. Meat (shiners or smelt) have been catching best,” he said.

The owner’s wife (Dana Berry) at Berry’s Bait in Alton Bay reported that Alton Bay has picked up a little, but travel has been tough with slush conditions. “All the slush is making it slow going, especially for ATVs. The lake trout fishing has been good with AJ’s bucktails. Locally, smaller ponds have been producing a lot of nice panfish. We’ve seen some really nice yellow perch lately. It’s NH school vacation week, so we should see another busy week on the Bay,” she said.

Jason MacKenzie at Pawtuckaway Trading Post in Raymond reported great ice fishing last week and weekend. “We have had great local ice on the lakes and ponds, but the real story is the smelt fishing on the Squamscott River. In the last few days, people have just been happy to still have good ice. The wind has hampered efforts a bit though. There have been about 20 or so people that have been regularly fishing at the end of River Road in Stratham and doing pretty good. The bite has been light, so people are using yarn on their hook to help keep the fish on. Defiant Lobster has been selling sea worms,” he said.