Here we are again, another Thursday, another fishing report!
Nelson got out a couple times this week, for only a couple hours each time, and reports that water temperatures are starting to get close to the 80 degree mark in some places. He said that catching wasn’t great but he did find some bass on top water baits and weightless soft plastic stick baits, in or around hard structure. Nelson says that top water baits early and late in the day should work well, but reminds us to not be afraid to try them during the day near thick weeds and in shady areas. Fishing a little deeper might get you something a little bigger also. We are in full summer mode fishing, let’s enjoy it. Good luck everyone!
Shawn the Fisherman fished the Three Belles Outfitters 4th trail stop down at Moodus Reservoir in Connecticut and said although it was a beautiful day for recreational boats, the fishing was a grind. He reports that the bass were small for everyone, with the top 5 bags only breaking 60″. He focused on drop offs from 8 to 10 feet, with numerous types of ned- rigged plastics and managed enough bites for a 5th place finish.
Shawn also did some pre-fishing in the Connecticut River for this weekend’s Elite Kayak Fishing event. More to come on this after the event!
Shawn also made a quick note to anyone planning on fishing local rivers: there’s been news articles regarding sewage runoff due to the storms this week, mainly in the section of the river below the Holyoke dam. Please exercise caution if planning on using that area over the next couple days.
Jerry hit the Connecticut River for some pre fishing as well for the upcoming Elite Kayak Fishing tournament, which you can still register for on the Fishing Chaos App until 5pm tomorrow, with the tournament being Saturday the 16th. Jerry said he found the river to be quite low south of Barton’s cove down through the valley with a lot of the river only 1.5 to 2 feet where it’s normally 6 to 8 feet. He said that although he caught numerous smallmouth bass, they were all 12 inches or less; not looking good for me.
That same evening Jerry also went out with his wife for a little fishing on a local hill town lake where they caught a variety of species fishing in 8 to 10 feet of water. Bass, bluegill, and crappie. Sunday he fished with his uncles on a Huntington lake with a total of 30 fish caught, a mix of bass and pickerel.
Bobby Roast Beef reports that this week has been very slow with most of his success on topwater with buzz toads on grass beds! When there have been bites, it’s worth the effort! He said that the fish in the small ponds he’s been fishing seem to be found tight to shade lines for the most part. No real luck finding any off shore, though I’m sure they’re plenty out deep, I’m just not on them yet.
Andy fished Otis for a few hours on Monday where the water was 74 degrees. He said that finesse fishing was the way to go, up in the rocks and weed beds and reports that there are lots of smallmouths around the rocky points of the state campground. Andy also reminds us to try to get out on the water before the lake gets active with lots of recreational boats and water toys. There’s great color on the fish out there, they must know they are going to get photographed!
Tim is back from his tropical retreat, and was only able to get out once for some pre fishing activity on a Mass/ New Hampshire lake. He was surprised to report that topwater was ineffective as was any type of reaction bait all day. It was a high sky pretty much all day and the bass were not chasing. The wind came up later in the day which would normally lend to a good spinner bait bite, but that wasn’t the case. Tim got his fish by finding any type of cover and he was able to put together a good shallow water bite with 3 fish close to 4 lbs. The majority of his fish were in the 2 plus pound range.
Folks, if you have not listened to this week’s episode of Jigs & Bigs, DO IT NOW! Bobby Roast Beef and Shawn the Fisherman have lots of great content this week including tournament overview, guest Matt Thayer and as always, my favorite segment, FTG. I am telling you, add this to your listen list for the week, you WON’T regret it!
We may have some rain later today, but tomorrow and the weekend are looking promising with temperatures in the low to mid 80s and, for the most part, no rain! Get out and fish everyone! Tight lines!
Wild Woman 