Wachusett Reservoir provides the perfect preseason warmup for winter-weary surfcasters.
Wachusett reservoir is the perfect fishery to get a rod bent while waiting for the striped bass migration to catch fire. If you spend any time fishing at the res, you may see some familiar faces from the Canal, the Rhode Island beaches, or even New York.
Wachusett acts as a ‘pre-opener’ for many striper obsessed surfcasters, not only because it offers an opportunity at some large fish but also a type of solitude that’s reminiscent of the surf.
Cold Spring
The spring fishery tends to start off pretty good as the cool spring water temps bring the lakers in close to shore. The hot bite will typically hold up to about mid-May. Since Wachusett is a ‘shore only’ fishery, the bite can be tough as summer comes closer; but most of us will be striper fishing by then, anyway!
It was a freezing windy day I was fishing the 140 side of the res in West Boylston. It was a long walk to the water, the hope was to catch a few decent fish quickly and then head out. I started by scouting out the rockier areas and started casting with many different colored epoxy jigs. The bite was proving to be pretty tough. A quick couple of casts turned into over an hour of casting and clearing my rod tip of ice, my fingers were just about frozen solid! I decided to try a more mobile approach, opting for a gold iPox-Z resin jig made by RWA Tackle. My plan of attack was to bounce the 1-ounce jig along the bottom, snapping it up and away from the rocks as soon as it made contact. One big piece of advice is to try to make long casts. The deeper the water the better, the lakers are often deep and longer casts cover more water.
So I was bombing casts and bouncing-and-reeling this jig, over and over, back to shore. Still the fish did not want to cooperate. I walked to the other side of the cover, determined to hook up. Scanning the surface for signs of life, suddenly I saw a school of smelt breaking on top barely 40-feet out! So I placed my cast slightly past where I saw the smelt jump. I was bottom bouncing my jig and slow reeling when I felt dead weight. I instinctively set the hook and my reel was instantly screaming. This fish wanted to fight!
After landing a beautiful laker, I decided to try one more deep drop-off area in a nearby cove before heading home. I figured I’d try a pink jig and switch it up. Cast after cast came back with not action, so I put the gold jig back on, to see if the color was the important variable that day. I decided to try a quicker retrieve, letting my jig hit bottom, snapping the jig and fast-cranking it back. That is when I hooked up to another nice laker. This one hit the jig aggressively and put up a great battle. I was all smiles as I hoofed it back to the car, and not only did I gain the confidence in the area I was fishing, but in the lure itself.
To Catch A Laker
Snap-jigging epoxies isn’t the only method that will hook these aggressive cold-water fish; in addition to various colors and sizes of epoxy jigs, I will carry several tins like Kastmasters, Little Cleo’s and Krocodiles… ranging from a half-ounce to 1-1/2 ounces. I like fire off a long cast, let it hit bottom, pick it up sharply and slow reel to shore. You may give it a twitch every now and again on the retrieve as the fish may attract to the flutter of the lure falling. When the bite is tougher, try faster or slower retrieves to see what the fish want. Lakers seem to love the colors gold, orange, silver, blue and even pink. Sometimes you’ll find a specific color seems to work best that day, just like I did. Confidence in your lure, and in the spot your fishing is everything!
Using dead shiners is another great way to target this species. I prefer to use lures as these fish are on the move, therefore casting and walking is what I rely on most and like best. But don’t get me wrong, some days it just works better to have a rod set up with bait while I actively fish the area with lures, waiting for the rod to go off. If using bait I like to set up my rig with a 1-ounce (non-lead) egg sinker above a 2-foot leader with a size 2 to 4 hook depending on the size of the shiner. You may want to blow up your shiner with a worm blower to keep the bait floating above the bottom.
Loosen your drag in case a big fish takes your bait, cast out as far as you can and wait. Set up your rod in the rocks with an extendable rod holder, sand spike or a stick if that’s all you have. Place a bobber on the line between your reel and first eye of the rod, and wait for it to rise. As a fish takes the bait that bobber will move instantly and you can remove the bobber then carefully grab the rod, tighten the drag and set the hook.
Know Before You Go
Things to know before making your first Wachusett trip: this is a shoreline only fishery and even wading is prohibited. Make sure you have lures that can reach the deeper water. The primary species are lake trout but Wachusett offers other species such as landlocked salmon, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass and perch. Different gates offer better access to specific species. When targeting lake trout, you want to look for deep drop-offs close to shore with rocky bottoms as opposed to sand. The sandy bottoms are better for targeting salmon or smallmouth. Look for smelt in tightly packed schools or washed up on shorelines to get an idea of where to cast.
Gates allow access to all corners of this massive reservoir. Most gates require a bit of a hike to get to the water, so dress accordingly and bring water, the best spots seem to be at the end of the longest hikes. Make sure you have all your belongings so you won’t have to make more than one trip. There are many gates that offer good fishing, just make sure you’re aware of the ‘no fishing area’ that extends out about a mile and half from the dam. Everyone has a preferred gate that they enjoy fishing or that they feel produces better than others, all of them seem to have something to offer.
B&A Bait and Tackle, a local tackle shop in West Boylston, right off the Route 12 causeway, offers a variety of live bait and all of the tackle needed to fish Wachusett, the shop is open seven days a week and year round. When speaking with Ed at the shop, he recommended the 8- to 9-foot Okuma medium/heavy action rod and reel combo they sell in store for anyone looking to get into this fishery. Nearly any freshwater setup will work, even your light saltwater stick will do! The best advice is to set yourself up for long casts, so a longer rod of 7 to 8 feet is recommended and some anglers will use rods as long as 10 feet.
Pair your rods with reels in the 3000 to 5000 size and spool them with light (8-to 15-pound) braided line. I usually use a 6-to 12-pound fluoro leader to finish the rig off, I prefer Yo-Zuri Super Fluoro. Fluorocarbon leaders are ideal for clear water as they are less visible under water than monofilament lines. I prefer to tie my leader direct to my lure, but you can use a small 25-pound TA Clip if you want to facilitate faster changes.
Wachusett is a great fishery for saltwater anglers who are waiting for the striper season to pick up. The res offers a shot at some very large fish, just a quick search through recent years will show some impressive lakers measuring in excess of 30 inches and, just last April, a 20-pounder was landed by angler, John Stamas! Fisheries biologists caught and released a 26-pounder, as well. Just like any other place, you may have days when you are completely shut out, or days that you have non-stop action. Don’t get discouraged and remember you can’t catch fish from the couch! It’s all part of the game and those off days makes this fishery and these lakers even more rewarding to catch.
