New England - New England Freshwater Fishing Reports
New England Video Fishing Forecast June 19, 2025
“Targetable numbers” was the phrase we heard over and over this week when describing the recent influx of bonito from Martha’s Vineyard to Point Judith. For the last few weeks they were mixed in with bass and blues, but this week the bones have assembled their ranks and begun feeding in schools. Stripers have kept up their can-do attitude this week, feeding heavily at Plum Island, various locations around Cape Cod, inshore Rhode Island, Block Island and western Long Island Sound to name just a few. Fluking continues to heat up in Rhody and Long Island Sound, while dinosaur doormats carpet Nantucket Shoals. We’re transitioning to summer in New England and the future – as far as the fishing goes – looks bright!
On June 9 John Chrisant and I fished Quabbin Reservoir’s Fishing Areas 2 and 3 out of Gate 31 in New Salem. Weather was a bit cool because of overcast and east wind. However, conditions were kind enough to keep us on the water for ten hours from 6:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Action played a significant role too. We had a lot of hits. In fact, our session would have been spectacular but for one factor: we missed or lost a load of smallmouths, most of them big. I did not keep count, but the number was substantial, probably twenty, maybe more. It was one of those days when one after another smallies either missed the lure, failed to get hooked, shook the hook on the jump, or pulled free during the battle. John and I did manage to boat thirteen smallmouths and five largemouths, but what we will remember most about the outing is the many, many bass we did not catch. Most of the smallmouths were on the first drop off surrounding sand-and-gravel shoals; the largies were in reeds or rocks approaching reed stands. Biggest bronzies measured 17.5, 17.75, 18, 19, and 19.25 inches; longest largies taped 17.25, 17.5, and 17.75 inches. A Heddon Tiny Torpedo and Zara Puppy on top and 5-inch, dark-colored wacky-rigged Yum Dingers on bottom worked well. We also caught a 10-inch rock bass on a crappie jig, the only panfish hooked all day. John and I burned nearly a full 6-gallon tank of gas during the session. We covered lots of water and probed many different spots, only a few of which yielded more than one hit. At the ramp in the morning we talked with two salmonid fishermen. One had enjoyed a fine session a few days before catching lake trout and landlocked salmon on streamers trolled on five colors of lead-core; the other had tallied just a single 3-pound salmon in his previous two trips.
Word from Rich at Fisherman’s World in Norwalk is that Saugatuck Reservoir is yielding a variety of species, most notably bass all over the impoundment and trout in the south end. Local trout-stocke...
Word from Rich at Fisherman’s World in Norwalk is that Saugatuck Reservoir is yielding a variety of species, most notably bass all over the impoundment and trout in the south end. Local trout-stocked rivers including the Mianus, Norwalk, and Mill in Fairfield were producing when water levels were lower, but action has slowed now that flow is high. Anglers will have to wait a while for streams to relax before good fishing resumes.
Andrew at Fishin’ Factory 3 in Middletown had plenty of fishing news. Water temperature is up, and neighborhood kids are catching largemouth bass on fake frogs in local farm ponds and golf course po...
Andrew at Fishin’ Factory 3 in Middletown had plenty of fishing news. Water temperature is up, and neighborhood kids are catching largemouth bass on fake frogs in local farm ponds and golf course ponds. Also, one of Andrew’s adult customers reported very good largemouth bass and stocked trout action at Millers Pond in Durham. Trout results also remain outstanding in area rivers, especially at Trout Management Areas. Flow levels are excellent, and the trout are biting. One of Andrew’s friends hit the Jeremy River and Eightmile River on the same day and caught trout at both. At the start of the weekend, the Connecticut River in Hartford was seven feet above normal, but that did not deter anglers who continued catching channel catfish, striped bass, and white perch on chunk bait in the Cromwell-to-Middletown stretch. One fellow fishing bait for stripers told Andrew he could not keep white perch off the line. Eagle Landing in Haddam continues to earn rave reviews from shore fishermen who have been landing loads of channel cats and bowfins there, the latter grabbing chunk baits intended for cats.
On par with my temperature diatribe above, much of the striper activity in the major rivers pushed outside last week, setting up some great opportunities for surfcasters along the adjacent beaches and...
On par with my temperature diatribe above, much of the striper activity in the major rivers pushed outside last week, setting up some great opportunities for surfcasters along the adjacent beaches and especially around concentration points and prominent nearby structures. This good fishing should continue this week and should bring with it a better-than-average chance for hooking larger fish.
Water temps have been running a consistent wave in Narragansett Bay which has held a lot of the spring stripers inside the bay. Water temps are slowly inching upward with each sunny day though, but ta...
Water temps have been running a consistent wave in Narragansett Bay which has held a lot of the spring stripers inside the bay. Water temps are slowly inching upward with each sunny day though, but taking a targeted approach, fishing the nighttime dropping tides, is giving you a shot at fishing water that’s 3 to 6 degrees cooler than it has been all day and that is turning on a bite of stripers from 15 to more than 40 pounds. The key has been finding bait, big metal lips have been hot.
Ian at Goose Hummock Shop in Orleans has been catching trout in Cape Cod ponds at first light. According to one of his co-workers who provided this information, Ian has been “doing very well.’’ ...
Ian at Goose Hummock Shop in Orleans has been catching trout in Cape Cod ponds at first light. According to one of his co-workers who provided this information, Ian has been “doing very well.’’ We were not able to contact Ian for more information.
Spoke with Ian at Red Top Sporting Goods in Buzzards Bay who told me he has not heard much about smallmouth bass in a while, but largemouth bass action has been steady both night and day at numerous w...
Spoke with Ian at Red Top Sporting Goods in Buzzards Bay who told me he has not heard much about smallmouth bass in a while, but largemouth bass action has been steady both night and day at numerous waters including Queen Sewell Pond in Bourne. Hot lures are wake baits and Senkos, but live shiners are also working nicely. Trout in ponds on and just off Cape Cod have gone deep but can still be caught even from shore on bait or lures delivered to deep water. Long Pond in Plymouth remains one of the most dependable trout producing sites.
From Rick in Milford we heard that Billy D. is still picking away at stocked trout on hardware at Hopkinton Reservoir. He is not “killing ‘em” but he is catching one or two each time out. Paul c...
From Rick in Milford we heard that Billy D. is still picking away at stocked trout on hardware at Hopkinton Reservoir. He is not “killing ‘em” but he is catching one or two each time out. Paul continues to do well with trout at Whitings Pond in North Attleboro. He uses many different baits and lures, and his catches comprise browns and rainbows, at least one of the latter weighing 3 pounds. On the bass scene, Tim and his kids have been scoring largies to 3.5 pounds along with chain pickerel on topwater lures at Whitehall Reservoir; Craig has been contacting largemouths to 3 pounds on shiners at Meadow Pond in Whitinsville; and Danny Southwick continues to catch smallmouth bass at Wachusett Reservoir. In addition, neighborhood youngsters experienced another satisfying session with small largemouths at Choate Park, and the school kids enjoyed their usual multi-species blast with perch, sunfish, and giant pond shiners at Milford Pond. (The Milford Pond kids are bought to the pond and guided by a local school teacher whom Rick calls The Doctor.)
Roger Aziz, Jr. in Methuen has been “hammering” shad in the Merrimack River which is also filled with herring and stripers, many of the linesides being big fish being caught below the dam in Lawre...
Roger Aziz, Jr. in Methuen has been “hammering” shad in the Merrimack River which is also filled with herring and stripers, many of the linesides being big fish being caught below the dam in Lawrence. Unfortunately, water level is fluctuating dramatically. At the time of this report it was way up again, and Rog did not expect it to decrease for a week or so. “I like high water,” he said, “but not this high.” Many pike to 44 inches are being taken above the dam. Plenty of trout remain available in local ponds, but very few people are catching any. Rog thinks they are depending upon early-spring tactics and fishing too high up in the water column. Employing lead-core line or some other means of getting lures deep would put them into lots of leftover stockies. Largemouth bass to 6 pounds are being caught and released in area waters too.
Skip at Saunders Boat Livery, Inc. in Southwick let us know that largemouth and smallmouth bass at Congamond Lakes are relating to the first drop and hitting well. Lots of both species are also along ...
Skip at Saunders Boat Livery, Inc. in Southwick let us know that largemouth and smallmouth bass at Congamond Lakes are relating to the first drop and hitting well. Lots of both species are also along the shore and under docks, and they too are providing exciting action. Many different lures including spinnerbaits, crankbaits, and plastic worms are in play, and bluegills, pumpkinseeds, rock bass, chain pickerel, and stocked trout are in the mix. Regarding trout, Skip said they are rising to insects very early in the morning. Winning entry in Thursday evening’s big bass event at Congamond Lakes was a 2-pound, 10-ounce largemouth. Skip also participated in a bass tournament at Onota Lake in Pittsfield. Not every contestant posted a high score, but many did including Skip who placed fifth and thinks he would have won the event had he not lost a largemouth estimated to weigh 5 pounds and a smallmouth he guessed would have topped 3 pounds. Some big pike were boated too. Skip had one weighing 10+ pounds.