Bass Fish Like a Pro - Central Maine

Red Fin Almost Cut in Half By a Strike!

It is certainly no secret that central Maine contains numerous truly epic lakes and ponds, each filled to the brim with large and small mouth bass. Topping this listing of impressive waters are Messalonskee and Cobbosseecontee Lake and Long, Great and North Pond. While bass are certainly thriving in these locations that does not mean you will necessarily be successful in catching them. A number of factors including time of day, you ability to locate promising bottom structure and lure selection are just a few of the variables that will need to be carefully considered.

Time of Day 
Early mornings and late evenings certainly top my list as favorite times to fish. These times of the day typically see less boat traffic and are less abused by high winds that build later in the day. Add to these benefits the possibility of viewing beautiful sunsets and sunrises and it isn’t hard to understand why a day on the water usually starts or ends in the dark. All things considered, however, excellent fishing can be had at anytime of the day, given you locate the fish and feed them what they want to eat. When the conditions are right and the fish decide to bite it sometimes seems that nothing will keep them off your hook.

Bottom Structure 
Depth maps and fish finders will assist you in studying bottom structure and finding fish but nothing can compare to general first hand knowledge of the area you are planning to fish.

Knowing where to find beaver lodges, underwater weed beds, sunken logs and stumps, rocks, shoals, ledges, drop offs, islands and other such areas will put you leaps ahead of other fishermen. Wearing a pair of polarized sunglasses, with bright sunshine and the benefit of calm water, the process of finding areas containing ambush cover for hungry bass and pike is greatly facilitated.

Mark these areas with a GPS or write down locations and you will be served for years to come with fishing hotspots.

Location

While any of these waters may be fished from shore with success, reaching the best fishing spots requires breaking free from the crowded boat launches and accessing areas that see little fishing pressure. Canoes, kayaks and all manner of larger watercraft can be used as long as care is taken to respect the anticipated weather conditions.

Many central Maine lakes are notoriously fickle and a beautiful day on the water can quickly turn life threatening. Always wear a life jacket, as water temps even a month after ice out will only allow minutes of survival time before your body will fail to function and you will drown.

In the spring of the year, as the water temperatures begin to slowly raise, bass will become more and more active. This can lead to great fishing in as early as April, with the activity remaining steady up to the end of June. By slowly working a mixture of flats (staging areas), weed beds, under water holes and heavy cover, anglers can expect to find many fine specimens in the 18-20 inch range, with fish over 20 inches occurring at regular intervals. While larger fish are always a possibility, extensive time and luck will be needed to find them.

Go with #4 BF

Lure Selection and Presentation 
For the bass fisherman looking for a unique experience, they should try using live red fin shiners (3-4 inches), 2/0 hooks, 45 lb steel leaders, large bobbers and 20 lb braided line. This set-up is effective on both small and large mouth bass and the heavy hardware ensures that if a massive northern pike is caught, it will be unable to escape. *Please note that you are not allowed to keep bass in the state of Maine caught on live bait until after July 1st. Also until July 1, you are only allowed to catch and keep one bass and it must be over 10 inches.

For many, pitching a bobber and staring at it all day long is not going to prove to be the most exciting of fishing endeavors. For the search and destroy crowd, who like to cast, sluggos, blue foxes and terminator spin baits are all capable of eliciting brutal reaction strikes, during the early spring. Securing these baits to your line with a protective steel leader, will assist in making sure pike can’t break free.

Fishing two poles, one for bobbing and one for casting is a great way to maximize your presentation by keeping two baits in the water at all times. This set-up allows you to fish live bait while the second line is cast and used to locate fish. This system is very effective anytime during the fishing season.

Access
The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer is a fantastic tool for locating boat launches and hand carries to allow access to the various lakes and ponds mentioned above. Also the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife has organized a fishing guide driven by Google Earth that provides vital information.

When fishing please be sure to monitor and clean your lures, motor, anchors and boat trailers of the invasive underwater plant Milfoil. Milfoil has the potential to destroy many of Maine’s premiere fishing destinations. Do you part and check for this evil little hitchhiker!

Remember as the water and air temperatures warm up a bit, it becomes the perfect time to introduce youngsters to the joys of fishing. To assist in this endeavor please read the following past blog posts:

1. Hook Kids Into Fishing – Introduction
2. Hook Kids Into Fishing – Hooks and Lures 
3. Hook Kids Into Fishing – Putting It All Together
4. Hook Kids Into Fishing – What If We Catch Something
5. Taking A Kid Fishing Yields Happy Memories

Also, for those of you chasing Salmon and Togue this spring, be sure to read:
1. Spring Fishing Techniques – Trolling

LASTLY, for those of you who would like to see me receive a public FLOGGING please read:
Frayed Friendship and the LOCATION of Lake X!

Find Your Own Nest!

This video depicts a couple hen turkeys apparently confused as to who should sit on the nest. I found this nest while scouting for turkeys and thought it would be fun to put a game camera on it and watch the comings and goings and various antics that would occur. Continue to monitor the blog for video updates. Maybe with continued effort I can get the hatching of the chicks on camera!

Big Boy Tom Lurks the Maine Woods

This photo depicts "Big Boy", a Tom turkey who has been lurking about my favorite hunting spot for the past several years. He is very smart and will immediately run the other way with the slightest off tune calling or upon seeing a decoy. Though many classify him as an mythic animal of legend, I know that he is only a turkey with the brain the size of a pea. Prepare to match wits with me "Big Boy", we will soon see who has the last laugh!

*Please ignore date, I apparently do not have the cranial capacity to correctly set a game camera! Hmmm, perhaps this battle of wits may no go as I had originally planned . . . stay tuned!