Ice Fishing On Lake Winnipesaukee

Had a pretty good day on the ice this week at Lake Winnipesaukee in Moultonborough, New Hampshire.  Managed to catch a nineteen inch Lake Trout and several Yellow Perch.

I arrived at AJ’s Bait and Tackle in Meredith at 9am Monday morning.  Purchased a dozen large smelt and a dozen shiners,  The guy at the shop recommended two spots with easy access, Levitt Park in Meredith and Long Island in Moultonborough.  I decided to try Levitt Park because it was the closest of the two.  The scenery was great but not the fishing. I got skunked.  

The next day I decided to give Long Island a try. There was open water nearby which could lead to more oxygen being available to the fish.  This spot looked promising. The ice was safe, at least eight inches thick.  After a few hours of no luck in the deeper area, I moved to a spot where the water was only 10 feet deep.  Almost immediately the tip-up flag went up and I soon landed a nineteen inch Lake Trout.  Over the next hour more flags popped up as schools of Yellow Perch moved through.  All the hits were on large smelt.  Nothing would touch the shiners.  

The Lake Trout is on my New Year’s Resolution Species Wish List.  I can check that one off.  

2017 Species Wishlist Update/ Ice-fishing

Scratch one off the the list of species I shouldn’t have missed in 2016.  Went on the first ice-fishing trip of the season to Dunn Pond in Gardner, MA and caught a Black Crappie.  The fishing was slow and I only managed to catch the one fish.  Might have fared better had I remembered to pack the earthworm container in the cooler.  Earthworms are the prime ice fishing bait for both Rainbow Trout and finicky panfish.  

Black Crappie (aka Calico Bass)

I liked the spot and plan on returning (with the earthworms!).  Dunn Pond is stocked with trout and has a nice variety of warm-water species.  The pond is part of a state park.  A large parking lot kept clear of snow makes for easy access.  Best of all there is a large waterfront visitors center with heated bathrooms, vending machines and a large stone fireplace to warm up by. 

Dun Pond State Park Visitors Center

2017 New Years Resolution (Or My Species Wish List)

The species I shouldn’t have missed in 2016.

Winter Flounder

Skate

Black Crappie

Tiger Trout

The Plan - 1. Try kayak fishing in the Spring for Winter Flounder in Barnstable Harbor or Plymouth Harbor. 2. Fish at night off the Cape’s north side beaches for Skate (and Striped Bass) . 3) Try ice fishing for Black Crappie in Beaver Pond in Franklin and some other ponds in southern New Hampshire.  4) Might have a shot at Tiger Trout by fishing the larger lakes in the mid to lower Cape.

New species to target 

Mahi

Red Drum

Black Drum

Sheepshead

Grouper sp.

Walleye

Zander

The Plan - 1. Could get lucky with Mahi this year on Brown’s Ledge during late Summer.  
2. Planning a trip to Cape Fear, North Carolina in May. That’s where I hope to get Red Drum, Black Drum, Sheepshead and Grouper. 3. Might bag a Walleye if I go ice fishing in Western Massachusetts. 4. Zander, the European version of the Walleye will be targeted during a trip in September to the Azores. This trip will also give me a shot at catching Groupers.

Species that I haven’t caught in a while that will be targeted in 2017.

Brown Bullhead

Weakfish

Spotted Seatrout

False Albacore

Lake Trout

Landlocked Salmon

The Plan - 1. Best bet for Bullhead is night fishing with dead baitfish or nightcrawlers.   2. North Carolina for Weakfish and Spotted Seatrout. 3. Could try using the Kayak on a not so windy day to reach the False Albacore during September.  4. Probably will do some ice fishing in Northern New England to go after Lake Trout and Landlocked Salmon.

2016 - Species List

One of the most satisfying aspects of fishing is the pursuit of different species.  My goal is to catch as many species as I can in one year.  This approach is similar to the activities of birdwatchers.  My birdwatching past is what inspired me to take a species diversification approach to fishing.

Here's the list for 2016.  It includes nine new species.  One of these, a young 22 inch Halibut was caught locally while Haddock fishing on Stellwagen Bank.  Another, the Green Band Wrasse was caught in the Virgin Islands. The the rest came from the Azores and include: Axillary Seabream, Black Tail Comber, Ornate Wrasse, White Seabeam, Two Banded Seabream, European Perch, and Northern Pike.

Missing from this year’s list are Winter Flounder, Skate, Black Crappie and Tiger Trout all of which were frustratingly hard to find.  I hope to remedy this in 2017!

All species are listed by a common name followed by the scientific name.  The number indicates how many were caught during the year.

1. Atlantic Mackerel, Scomber scombrus (51)

2. Axillary Seabream Pagellus Acarne (5)

3.Black Sea Bass, Centropristis striata (202) 

4. Black Tail Comber, Serranus atricauda (13)

5. Bluefish, Pomatomus saltatrix (15)

6. Blue Runner, Caranx crysos (3)

7. Cod, Gadus morhua (61)

8. Cunner, Tautogolabrus adspersus (47)

9. Cusk, Brosme brosme (1)

10. Fluke, Paralichthys dentatus (14)

11. Green Band Wrasse, Halichoeres bathyphilus (1)

12. Haddock, Melanogrammus aeglefinus (104)

13. Hake, Urophycis chuss (3)

14. Halibut, Hippoglossus hippoglossus (1)

15. Menhaden, Brevoortia tyrannus (22)

16. Northern Kingfish, Menticirrhus  saxatilis (5)

17. Ornate Wrasse, Thalassoma Pavo (1)

18. Pollock, Pollachius virens (16)

19. Puffer, Sphoeroides maculatus (2)

20. Sculpin, Myoxocephalus scorpius (22)

21. Scup, Stenotomus chysops (123)

22. Sea Raven, Hemitripterus americanus (1)

23. Sea Robin, Prionotus carolinus (22)

24. Smooth Dogfish, Mustelus canis (2)

25. Spiny Dogfish, Squalus acanthias (12)

26. Striped Bass, Morone saxatilis (135)

27. Tautog, Tautoga onitis (5)

28. Two Banded Seabream, Diplodus Vulgaris (6)

29. White Seabeam, Diplodus Sargus (1)

30. Whiting, Merluccius bilinearis (1)

31. Bluegill Sunfish, Lepomis macrochirus (9)

32. Brook Trout, Salvelinus fontinalis (6)

33. Brown Trout, Salmo trutta (17)

34. Chain Pickerel, Esox niger (21)

35. European Perch, Perca fluviatilis (2)

36. Largemouth Bass, Micropterus salmoides (47)

37. Northern Pike, Esox lucius (1)

38. Pumpkinseed Sunfish, Lepomis gibbosus (17)

39. Rainbow Trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (29)

40. Smallmouth Bass, Micropterus dolomieu (6)

41. White Perch, Morone americanus (21)

42. Yellow Perch, Perca flavescens (119)

Fall Freshwater Fishing On Cape Cod

Fall is a great time for freshwater fishing.  For one thing the ponds on Cape Cod aren’t as crowded as they were in the Spring.  Then there’s the weather.  Fall fishing begins with warm October days and gradually gets cooler giving the angler the chance to acclimate just as the freshly stocked trout are acclimating to their new surroundings. 

This year I fished the usual Upper Cape Ponds.  As always Spectacle Pond produced the most trout, an almost equal number of Browns and Rainbows.  Pimlico Pond was  the hotspot for Brown Trout.  Johns Pond was the place to go for a mixed bag of trout, Smallmouth Bass and White Perch.  Hoxie was a disappointment this year in the trout department but not when it came to Chain Pickerel and Largemouth Bass.  

Other locations included: Mashpee Wakeby Pond, Peters Pond, Long Pond in Yarmouth, Hathaway Pond in Hyannis, and Hamblin Pond in Marstons Mills.

I use live bait, night crawlers, mummichogs and Banded Killifish, for most of my freshwater fishing.  The bait is fished below a sliding bobber. Sometimes I’ll cast small metal spoons for trout or swimming minnow plugs for bass.

 My son Nate caught this Brown Trout at Spectacle Pond with a live Banded Killifish

A Chain Pickerel also caught using a live Banded Killifish.  This one was at Hoxie Pond.