41°46’05.68” N, 72°10’31.58” W
Mansfield Hollow Lake is located within Mansfield Hollow State Park in Connecticut and is a popular year-round destination for anglers from across New England. Spanning roughly 460 acres, the lake is split in two by Bassett Bridge Road. The lake, or really reservoir, was created when the Natchaug River was dammed in 1949 and officially pronounced a state park in 1952. There is no fee to park but as it is a State Park, alcohol is prohibited.
The lake holds a good variety of fish including yellow perch, largemouth bass, bluegill and crappie. The Connecticut state record rainbow trout was caught here in 1998 (14 pounds, 10 ounces), and while trout are no longer stocked in Mansfield, three well-stocked rivers that feed it are so drop-downs can be expected. That said, it’s the northern pike fishery that garners much of the attention from fishermen and through the ice in the winter is extremely popular. I know of enough 15- to 20-pound pike iced at “The Hollow,” as it is referred, to keep it on my radar as a hard-water destination.
To help support the pike fishery, the fisheries division of the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) began stocking 3- to 6-inch fingerling pike here in 1992 through the, “Development of a northern pike fishery in Mansfield Hollow Reservoir and continued management of Haddam Meadows Marsh… In Mansfield Hollow Reservoir, these stockings are expected to establish a population of four pike per acre and to generate 2,700 hours of directed angler effort.” According to the DEEP’s 2016 Fish Stocking Report, 2,395 fingerling pike were stocked in Mansfield.
Heading northwest from the parking area at the launch ramp located on Bassett Bridge Road, you’ll quickly encounter one of the deepest spots in the lake as the bottom drops out to about 15 feet deep. While deep water may be best in the hot summer months, I prefer to stay rather shallow when hunting pike and bass through the ice. Work the coves and transition areas that lead to deep water with large dead bait for your best shot at a trophy pike. That said, I’ve seen some pretty big pike fooled with tiny worm-tipped jigs meant to pass the time on panfish in-between flags, so you just never know for sure what might work on a given day.
Early/first ice can be very good here for pike, but as always one must use extreme caution when fishing the early-winter hard water. Be sure to give a look to the article this month by Kyle Quine on fishing first ice for a few tips on finding early success.
