Happy Thursday!! It’s time for another J&B fishing report!
Unfortunately I have not been able to make a bank send since last week on Friday, it’s just been one of those weeks – and yesterday I opted to try some foraging for ramps. My brother did get out on Tuesday this week and fished off shore at Pontousic where he reported that the fish were biting on a Red pattern wacky rig.
Mister Bobby Roast Beef has been MAKING MOVES! In the last week he’s made it out from the Berkshires, all the way out to Central Massachusetts. He reports that water temps are climbing across the board, and the fish are responding well! The bass are getting up on beds and a good amount can be found pretty shallow. The majority of fish I’ve been catching have been in water no deeper than 5 feet. Bobby said that he managed a number of pike late last week on some more subtle moving presentations; 4″ swimbaits and the like.
Monday he managed an armada of nibbler largies and a half dozen of absolute brutes of the bluegill variety on finesse jigs and downsized spinners. They were eating the bait really good, as long as my retrieval speed was fairly slow. He also pointed out that the color seemed irrelevant and that it was mainly the right size profile that seemed to do the trick. Tuesday he hit up a river system looking for something variety of species but landed all Largemouth and Sunfish. Bobby said that he didn’t see any beds, but all the bites were incredibly shallow and tight to wood or under overhanging trees in the shadows. Conditions this day were bluebird skies, and little to no wind. Size of the bait seemed to be more of a sticking point here as well. I attempted to upsize ever so slightly to eliminate smaller fish… and they just turned right off. Switched back and we were on again.
Shawn the Fisherman got out twice this week to ponds in central Massachusetts. He reports also that the waters have warmed up from 60 to 70 (!) degrees over the course of the week, and the bass were either prepping to or on beds. Shawn said that he stuck with the jig and it paid off with a couple fish in the 3-4 pound range and around two dozen smaller fish. The recent storms may have slowed the spawning process down, so keep your eyes peeled for beds and be ready to fish nearby dropoffs if the fish have pulled back.
Jerry also reports that the water temperatures are warming up in the Berkshire’s mid 50s to 60! He said that the largemouth bass are feeding up for the spawning too – which means a great chance to get on that pre-spawn bite! He caught 39, YES THIRTY NINE FISH – with a bunch in the three to four pound range. He said that he used a variety of techniques including ned, neko, and jerkbaits all in natural colors. Get outdoors fishing with friends and family to enjoy some fishing!
Tim TSJ headed up to the Berkshires for a tournament this past Sunday where the air temperature was about 50 degrees and it rained all day with water the water temperature was around 61 degrees. He said that early morning he got on the bite with 1/8 oz jig head with a soft plastic and was also able to get a couple with a rattle trap. Tim had four fish by 9 o’clock, and went searching for some largemouths but unfortunately that bite never materialized. Next he moved onto a windblown point where he caught my early morning fish, but somebody was fishing it so he headed to opposite shoreline with the thought that maybe they moved up shallow. Tim’s guessing was right, and that 8 ounce Ned with a soft plastic was able to put 14 pounds of smallmouth in the boat just about averaging 3 pounds of fish. It appeared the fish were moving up just kind of Cruising in the shallows looking for a place to bed. Maybe I hit some beds that I couldn’t see. Next closest competitor was second place with 9 1/2 pounds.
Today Tim got out to local Lake Congamond and reported that there were some beds in North Pond where the water temperature was 65 degrees. He said that there were lots of cruising fish near beds, but they weren’t super interested. Tim did catch 6 total fish, 5 largies and one smallie all on the 8 ounce ned head with soft plastic, and a rattle trap. We’re in the height of spawning, although middle and south seem to be a little bit behind north pond in water temperature so it should be good for the next week or so just remember put them right back where you catch them.
Don’t forget to check out this week’s episode of Jigs & Bigs podcast! This week was a tossup for me between the news segment with Who TF is Joe Brown and the FTG – and as always it was a great show! I have to tell you, if you’re not a listener you’re missing out – it’s the highlight of my Tuesday!
This weekend looks like we are going to have some cloud cover, but not rain so get out there and try to get on that pre spawn bite! Get out there and fish it up! Stay safe, and tight lines!
Wild Woman 