Eastern Ma & New England Area Fishing Reports

[guidoStow]

For safety I have a carabiner clip and float on the top end of the anchor so I can free things if things get dicy and go back to the float later to recover the anchor. 

[JG233]

On 10/22/2021 at 12:40 AM, DogBone_384 said:

Down the Tackle Warehouse rabbit hole!  Hold off on new rods.  I've built a heck of a Kistler arsenal... you should try some out and wait for their sales.  Compared to the Kistlers I own, that St. Croix MH/M I believe you sampled feels like a broom stick.

 

I have a few bait cast setups around 10 - 12 ounces spooled up with braid.

 

I'd love to try one of the Kistler's. I'm down to 3 essential setups now, but I caught most of my fish by going finesse during all my recent trips. I'm not sure what else I might want to pick up since my opportunities to fish are limited for the next few years. I'm mainly picking up kayak gear and tackle.

[MassYak85]

I'm debating whether I want to put my rain gear to the first real test on Saturday. Looks like a wall of water all day. Could be good, could suck, do you guys have good luck during fronts late in the Fall usually? I've gotten a few big ones on cold drizzly october days but it seemed like the bite otherwise on those days was slow. 

[Mr. Aquarium]

I’m tempted to try tomorrow afternoon after work! Not sure how it would be 

[Styguy922]

I took the entire day off tomorrow to fish lol....will see how it goes.  Checked local water temps today they’re around 54 degrees which looks good to me. Intended to fish more today and log off of remote work early but kept getting caught up.

 

Really hope I can stick a few good ones tomorrow!!

[DogBone_384]

6 hours ago, MassYak85 said:

I'm debating whether I want to put my rain gear to the first real test on Saturday

Flip a coin… then go!

[Don51]

You never know! I have caught fish in the snow out in the kayak in November! Not the most pleasant conditions though.  

[Styguy922]

Went out for most of today.  Started around 7am at Chebacco Lake, fairly large body of water in Hamilton that is alewife/herring fed.  Have never really fished there before but have heard good things.  Water temp was around 48 when I arrived but warmed up to 55 or so by 11:30.  Threw chatterbaits, 110’s, Ned rig, jig.  Tried shallow, deep, drop offs, inside turns, and couldn’t get anything but one crappie to bite ?.   Of the bass I saw on sonar, most looked to be pretty pinned on the bottom.  Wondering if the terrible weather this week dropped the temp at a rate they were less than comfortable with.  
 

Packed up and drove to concord to fish Walden Pond.  Water temp was around 60-61.......  Kettle hole similar to the cape ponds, has a large population of trout and smallmouth bass with a few largemouths mixed in according to what I found online and by world of mouth.  Nothing there either.  Threw the same baits and mixed in a flat sided crank.  At this point it was 3pm and had plans this evening so packed it in until Sunday when I’m going to try again!   What a rough day though lol.....I haven’t had one that bad in a while.  All it tells me is I need to be better on rough days...or perhaps there’s something I’m doing wrong.....either way, onward to Sunday!  Hope you guys get out this weekend! 

[guidoStow]

Nice report!

Walden is rarely an easy place. Years ago I used to have pretty decent luck for trout on the midge hatch and this spring I watched a guy doing real well when the smallmouths were bedding. The bait guys do well but folks throwing artificials are signing up for a challenge... 

[Styguy922]

7 minutes ago, guidoStow said:

Nice report!

Walden is rarely an easy place. Years ago I used to have pretty decent luck for trout on the midge hatch and this spring I watched a guy doing real well when the smallmouths were bedding. The bait guys do well but folks throwing artificials are signing up for a challenge... 

 

Thanks!  Next time I’ll hopefully catch some fish to put some pics along with it......

 

well, that makes me feel a bit better haha.  It’s funny, in retrospect, I did read some similar feedback around Walden but saw one or two reports that said it was good.  Guess some old fashioned confirmation bias and curiosity around that body of water, combined with an ego, led me to believe I would be one of the few who would do well .

 

I’ll try chebacco again soon - they hold tourneys at that lake so they’re in there.  I almost made the drive down to Plymouth earlier this AM for some combined LM and SM but traffic had already piled up at 6am so I figured maybe next weekend I’d try.

[DogBone_384]

13 hours ago, Styguy922 said:

Next time I’ll hopefully catch some fish

With water temps approaching the 50's, I recommend getting out your blade baits.  If you don't have any, I do well with Binsky and Damiki brands.

 

I'm planning on Plymouth on Monday and Cape Cod for 11/8 - 11/10.

 

Best of luck to everyone getting out.

[dovii]

On 10/22/2021 at 7:06 PM, MassBass said:

 With all this chat about Chauncy, I should note that I won a tournament there. Never been there before, but my bud and I showed up and won the thing. Never been back. Winning bait was a black/chart. balsa crankbait. It was early summer but the weeds were still rising through the water column. Kicker came near that trail where the wind was blowing in on some rock structure. I could not get over that old mental hospital that overlooks the lake. Think of the confined souls that once gazed longingly upon Chauncey.  

That was a while ago then
They have built a lot of nice condos there now and those old building are demolished completely. Its funny my kid says now that they have all these people living so close chauncy won't be our secret anymore. It doesnt see as many anglers as whitehall for sure.

[MassYak85]

22 minutes ago, dovii said:

That was a while ago then
They have built a lot of nice condos there now and those old building are demolished completely. Its funny my kid says now that they have all these people living so close chauncy won't be our secret anymore. It doesnt see as many anglers as whitehall for sure.

Smaller parking lot helps keep the pressure down too. I've honestly never done great at Chauncy. A few decent ones but never anything over 5, although I've heard other people catch them.

[Mr. Aquarium]

Got em good yesterday. Quick after work trip. Had 2 or so hours to fish before dark. We got 10 bass 6 fat perch and a pickerel in the boat.  All fish were caught on jigs and tubes. They wanted nothing else 

[Styguy922]

4 hours ago, DogBone_384 said:

With water temps approaching the 50's, I recommend getting out your blade baits.  If you don't have any, I do well with Binsky and Damiki brands.

 

I'm planning on Plymouth on Monday and Cape Cod for 11/8 - 11/10.

 

Best of luck to everyone getting out.

Sure do! I actually have both of those brands so I’ll work them into the rotation 

[Frezzy]

10 hours ago, Mr. Aquarium said:

Got em good yesterday. Quick after work trip. Had 2 or so hours to fish before dark. We got 10 bass 6 fat perch and a pickerel in the boat.  All fish were caught on jigs and tubes. They wanted nothing else 

Healthy looking fish.  Well done!

[Mr. Aquarium]

12 hours ago, Frezzy said:

Healthy looking fish.  Well done!

Thanks bud. They are very healthy in this spot. They fight hard. But they are all the same size. 2-4 pounds, Fat healthy fish. But no giants.  The perch are fat to! 

[Styguy922]

On 10/30/2021 at 10:12 AM, Mr. Aquarium said:

Got em good yesterday. Quick after work trip. Had 2 or so hours to fish before dark. We got 10 bass 6 fat perch and a pickerel in the boat.  All fish were caught on jigs and tubes. They wanted nothing else 

Great looking fish, dude.  How do you like the dobyns fury?  I have a couple they’ve served me well 

[Mr. Aquarium]

44 minutes ago, Styguy922 said:

Great looking fish, dude.  How do you like the dobyns fury?  I have a couple they’ve served me well 

I like the dobyns! I got a champion 806. It’s a work horse. 

[MassYak85]

Had the day off so another long weekend. Fished yesterday and today. Not great either day, seemed like the rain Saturday messed them up a bit. Didn't get any bass yesterday but managed two today on a jig. Got both on a deep laydown in 15 FOW. Very healthy fish around 2.5-3lbs. Water temps 52-54 both days. I think I tried a bit too much to force feed them the chatterbait. I think slowing down more and maybe going more finesse with the baitfish imitations would have been the better play. 

 

I got another long weekend planned and then Thanksgiving so I'm hoping for a good end to the year. Looking for that big fall bite. 

[DogBone_384]

2 hours ago, MassYak85 said:

Not great either day

I had a similar outing this afternoon @ Hedges. I packed my waders and drove down after work.  I threw a bluegill chatterbait, perch Rapala Shadow Rap Shad (shallow), perch Jackall Rerange, 3.3" Keitech w/underspin, chart/white spinner bait, and orange/brown wacky Senko (last few minutes "hail mary style").   A lot of work for not even a whiff and a LOT of wilted salad.

 

Best I can figure is that everyone was out of my casting range since I was in waders.  

 

Todays highlight reel was the baitfish and polliwogs along the shore and one bat that flew around above me at dusk. 

 

I'll be on Cape Cod 11/8 -11/10 with my Ranger and kayak hopefully I'll find some fall bite before we all break out our winter gear!

 

Add: I looked at my log and wouldn't you know it, I caught SMB in early November here the last two years with blade baits .... ?

[Don51]

You should save some driving time and hit Little. The trout should be in full swing with some bass mixed in. And you can also hit Billington for some smallies and picks. I would love to be up there right now! 

[DogBone_384]

3 hours ago, Don51 said:

Billington for some smallies and picks.

Smallies ????  I’ve never caught one there.

[NE.Angler]

Hey everyone! I just recently moved to Waltham for a new job and I have been itching to get out and catch some bass. I'm originally from Granby CT and spent most of my time fishing in the Berkshires and other areas of western MA out of a kayak. My favorite techniques are two opposite ends of the spectrum, that being finesse, specifically drop shotting and then throwing big soft swimbaits like the Trash Fish and the Beast Coast Creep.  I decided to join this forum because it seemed like a lot of you guys are pretty active and knowledgeable about the area which leads me to my main question. Where would y'all recommend I go for numbers, size, best chance of getting bit on big baits, etc. for this weekend? I'm really looking to be exposed to as much new water as possible and I'm willing to drive a decent amount of time but I would like to explore some more local waters first. Any suggestions on spots, tips and tricks, or some hot baits right now would be much appreciated. I'm not looking to invade anyone's honey hole just looking for a little push in the right direction for some success.

[Don51]

4 hours ago, DogBone_384 said:

Smallies ????  I’ve never caught one there.

I saw a post a few years ago about someone catching smallies there. I didn’t believe it, with the place being so shallow. I fished it a couple of years ago with waders and caught a few off the point to the right of the boat launch. They are in there!  ?