Fishing Report February 2, 2026
A brutal week of cold weather and wind kept many people off the ice last week and weekend. Those who braved the temps reported consistent fishing. Lake Winnipesaukee has been producing a lot of lake trout, albeit small this year, there are many. Sebago really just got going, but anglers report consistent ten fish trips. Moosehead continues to produce trophy brook trout. Local ponds are all producing rainbow, brook, and brown trout, depending on where you go. The Great Meredith Rotary Ice Fishing Derby is this coming weekend and many anglers will be out with their eye on the prize. Stop in to our fishing department for all your ice fishing gear and bait needs.
Maine:
Greg Cutting at Jordan’s Store in Sebago told us that all of Sebago was frozen, but not all of it was safe to fish. “Ice thickness really depends on where you go. A guy walked out onto the Shoals yesterday and had 6 or 7 inches. When he was coming back, he went through next to the shore. You really need to be careful and don’t assume the ice is safe just because you see people out there. Not everyone checks. The ice in front of Harman’s is spotty, but there are some fishable areas. Some guys have been getting out onto 140 feet of water and picking up some fish. Most guys are reporting ten or so lake trout each trip. A lot of the deepwater fish are puking up smelt, so that’s a good sign. Some guys have been catching white perch up to Long Lake. Some other people headed to Hancock for yellow perch. I like to set traps for browns and then target yellow perch jigging,” he told us.
Vern at Cobbossee Bait happily reported a very busy, but cold weekend in Kennebec County. “It’s starting to warm up a bit and more people are fishing today. We still have phenomenal ice conditions and no signs of slush yet. People can get where they want to go with snowmobiles and ATVs. The walking fishermen have slowed down a bit. There is a hard pack on top of the snow and you break through when you walk if you’re carrying gear. The fishing has been slow, but better than most people thought it was going to be with the cold and the full moon. A ton of people are still heading up to Moosehead for those big brookies. They don’t love that they have to put a 3 pound brook trout back down the hole, but it seems like everyone that comes back tells me about those nice fish,” he said.
New Hampshire:
Tim from Tim Moore Outdoors/Lake Winnipesaukee Fishing Guide Service on Lake Winnipesaukee was on the mend after a brutal week of guiding two trips a day in subzero temperatures and wind. “I’m grateful for the cold weather. It makes good ice, but it makes everything hurt. My gear is frozen and needs to be brought into the shelter to thaw to a usable state, and the fishing is tougher. The impending full moon didn’t help. We did better than I expected, though. I had very low expectations most days and communicated that to my clients. Most of them caught far more white perch and lake trout than I thought they would. They didn’t get a ton on the jig, but the ones that did produce were the white and the chartreuse Wonder Bread Pinhead Pro and the gold with red dot ¼ ounce Leech Flutter Spoon. Most everything else was caught on the Clam Predator Tip Ups with live smelt. We caught more lake trout than white perch, but did manage some dandy whites. A couple in one of the afternoon trips, when it was coldest and windiest, struggled. The rest stayed as busy as anyone wanted to be outside in that weather. The waning full moon, slightly warmer temps, and lighter winds should improve things, but fishing pressure from the upcoming Meredith Rotary Ice Fishing Derby next weekend always slows the fishing down,” he said.
Alan Nute at Winnisquam Country Store in Tilton was in his trailer getting his spare smelt tanks ready for deliveries to prep for the Meredith Rotary Ice Fishing Derby this weekend. “The ice continues to get thicker. I’m seeing snowmobiles out here on Winnisquam. They’re catching some nice rainbows and lakers out here. It looks like another cold and windy weekend for the derby. Get your heaters and shelters ready. We’ll have plenty of smelt and some suckers. No huge suckers yet, but we have some up to 12 inches. I might be able to get ahold of some bigger ones later this week. I’m hearing of some decent white perch catches on Winnipesaukee. Bucktails have been hot for lakers lately. The cold makes the bite a bit slower, so you just have to stick it out and put your time in,” he said.
Lon Berry at Berry’s Bait in Alton Bay was also busy gearing up for the coming ice fishing derby. “It was a brutally cold weekend. The runway is now open. There was definitely not as many people out fishing. We had several customers head back out on Sunday because of how few people were out Saturday. The fishing was decent, though. I saw a bunch of lakers, a few white perch, and some rainbows. The PK Flutterfish, the vertical and the horizontal one, has been good. The Leech Flutter Spoons have been flying out the door, too. AJ’s Bucktails are always popular,” he told us.