Fishing Report April 6, 2026

Spring is here and things are happening. Reports are that Sebago is mostly ice-free and Winnipesaukee is close behind. Salmon season is open on Winnipesaukee and there have been many anglers out in small boats and kayaks, or fishing from shore for rainbow trout and salmon. Local trout ponds are being stocked throughout Massachusetts and some New Hampshire rivers are producing good catches. The coming weekend forecast looks like temps in the 60s, which should open up more opportunities and really move things along.

Maine:
Greg Cutting at Jordan’s Store in Sebago opened our call with “the ice is out.” Telling us that not all, but the majority of Sebago Lake had gone out. “There is just a little bit of ice that blew in along our west shoreline overnight. That won’t last long. I guess Jordan Bay is open and it looked like the Lower Bay was open. I’m sure there is some ice floating around the lake somewhere, but I didn’t see any. I’ve got smelts coming. As for launches, Nassan’s Beach is open, the Station will probably be open, and the state park is open. I don’t think any of the docks are in yet. I’m looking forward to getting out with the spot lock and jigging for lake trout. The salmon will be more fun in a couple of weeks when they start coming out of the water. There are a bunch of salmon in the Songo River by the locks. The spring salmon fishing looks really good,” he said.

New Hampshire:
Tim from Tim Moore Outdoors/Lake Winnipesaukee Fishing Guide Service on Lake Winnipesaukee told us that he thought ice-out would be declared sometime this coming weekend. “The ice is going super fast. Milder temps with wind and rain have really blown a lot of it out already. Most of Alton Bay is open and there was a bunch of open spots throughout the Broads on Saturday. I was guessing April 18, but I think it will be sooner than that. The boat will be home this weekend and I will be ready as soon as I can get to my dock in Roberts Cove,” he told us.

Ki at Dover Marine/Covered Bridge Sports says that the ponds are all open and the rivers are fishing well now. “There are a ton of people fishing the local rivers and doing really good. We have been selling a ton of zebra midges. They are getting panfish everywhere with the colder water in the ponds. For largemouth, local guys are doing really well slow rolling chatterbaits and snapping jerk baits off of secondary points. Baxter and Swains have been pretty hot,” he told us.

Massachusetts:
Pete Santini at Fishing Finatics in Everett told us that the trout, haddock, and holdover stripers are all biting good. “We’ve got Horne, White’s, Jamaica, and Sluice Ponds doing well for trout. Pretty much all the local stocked ponds have been stocked now. They're doing good fishing with Power Eggs with the sliding rigs and small hooks. The hot lure has been the Speedy Shiner. Don’t cast and retrieve it. You need to cast it out and let it flutter down. There have been some big bass in Mystic Lakes and up in the Charles and Mystic Rivers. There are some big largemouth and some holdover stripers where the Muddy River comes into the Charles. There are herring in the locks in Charlestown and there are some big holdover stripers chasing them. If you can get out, there are haddock out by the Northwest corner of Stellwagen. Wachusett Reservoir is doing great for lake trout right now. No flounder news yet,” he said.