A look back at derbies, look ahead at more fishing

By Dick Pinney

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Gusty, windblown snow and temperatures hovering just above zero were the conditions this morning as we solicited reports from most of our reporting sources. Those conditions really impacted the fishing pressure on Sunday, while Saturday's snow held off long enough for quite a few anglers to get out on the ice early in the day.

In Mane, fishing derbies and tournaments again dominated some of the news, with Maine's Sebago Lake Togue Derbyfest being the largest. Dave Garcia at Naples Bait and Tackle on Long Lake in the Sebago area attended the weighing-in ceremonies held at nearby Point Sebago resort. Here's Dave's take on the whole event.

    "This whole derby thing had several goals. First, our fisheries people were looking for ways to thin out the togue (lake trout) population at Sebago Lake, which they viewed as getting out of hand and negatively impacting the smelt populations there. Secondly, this event would create some economic stimulation to the local economy during a usual slow time of the year and lastly, fundraising for some very popular causes was also a large goal of the event organizers."

    "This year, because of the lack of good ice on Sebago Lake (as we write this, the large part of the lake just iced-out again), it was decided to make the derby a statewide event. Because of the newness of these rules and lack of ice on Sebago, the entries were well below the goals, only a thousand entries where last year there were over two thousand. But the enthusiasm was big".

    "There were two ways to win the large prizes. In the Big Fish competition, a 19- pound plus musky caught in Glazier Lake won the first prize. Second prize went to an 18- pound plus northern pike taken from Great Pond in the Belgrade area. Also caught from Great Pond was the third place fish, a 14 pound pike."

    "In the Fish Pool event, the largest of the allowed species that did not qualify for the Big Fish contest were entered, one entry only for the largest of fish in a species. Some of these fish were, a one-pound black crappie taken at Parker Pond, a white perch of over a pound caught at Sabattus Lake, as well as a yellow perch over a pound, also caught at Sabattus. A four pound, seven ounce chain pickerel caught at Cold Rain Pond took the pickerel prize. The largest lake trout was a 14 pounder that was caught at Lobster Lake while a brown trout of over five pounds came out of Belgrade's Great Pond. A single pike and musky, that didn't make the Big Fish contest, were also entered."

    "There were some very substantial prizes in the Fish Pool, many of them more than the Big Fish contest. They varied from a snowmobile to a nice fish finder. Each prize was drawn from a random drawing of the pool, with the black crappie taking the first prize snowmobile. This kind of random drawing seems to be popular and gives everyone a chance at a big prize."

    Garcia's own lake, Long Pond, had produced some active salmon fishing (which were not included in the derby's allowed prize fish) and some pretty good brown trout and perch fishing. "Actually, it was the cusk fishing that surprised us! Cusk were hitting like crazy on Long and there were plenty of decent ones, in the five to six pound class. We also heard that Thomas Pond in Casco was doing well on white perch—one family group had 45 flags go up and the kids had a blast chasing them. Another highlight were two huge largemouth bass caught, weighed, photographed and released. One was nine pounds, seven ounces while the other was over eleven pounds, probably a new state record had it been killed."

    "Thompson Lake in Casco was doing well on togue. On March 1st, the rules change there. It's artificial lures only and a one salmon limit. Only two lines are allowed." (Many thanks to Dave for his in-depth report!)

    "The big lake (Sebago) has frozen solid seven times only to be windblown clear again," noted Carroll Cutting at Jordan's Store in East Sebago. "That may be a record."     

    "We didn't see much fishing on the lake from derby people, but one event, the Polar Dip at nearby Raymond Beach, where people were sponsored financially to jump into the frigid water of Sebago Lake, was incredibly successful. Fifty thousand dollars was raised by these brave people!"

    Cutting said that much of the money raised by the derby was for the Maine Children's Cancer Programs, of which nearby Camp Sunshine on Point Sebago is a large benefactor.

    "Want a big game-experience while out ice fishing?" asks Chris Henson at Kittery Trading Post's fishing department. "You could fish a lifetime and not have a chance at a fish weighing double digits if you just fished for trout, salmon, bass, pickerel or cusk. But big game ice fishing is available right under your nose here in the Northeast, with both pike and musky providing the opportunity and right now is the time that those big toothy critters become more vulnerable as they get close to their spawning times."

    "Big pike and musky, including tiger musky that are a cross between both species, eat big baits—incredibly big stuff. Last year a Maine biologist out on the ice in the Belgrade Lakes region came across an angler that had a big pike that looked a bit grotesque. The fish weighed way more for its length than it should have. With the fisherman's permission, the biologist did a stomach content search and found a brown trout of over six pounds! So when fishing these species, don't be intimidated with too large a baitfish."

    "Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Vermont all have pike fisheries, while Maine has musky and Massachusetts has a few bodies of water with tiger musky. We're not sure about Vermont having musky, but their Lake Champlain chain of lakes sure have plenty of pike and other interesting fish."

    "In the Granite State, probably your best bet would be the Moore Dam Reservoir in Littleton. This is a huge body of water with little private shore ownership, so it's kind of a wilderness experience, once out on the lake. There are several public access areas but camping overnight on any of the access spots is prohibited. One caution about fishing any reservoir that is part of a power dam system, you have to be very aware of ice thickness and know that strong currents are caused by the flow of power generation, usually during the daytime, when demand for power is greatest. Narrow parts of reservoirs and points should be checked carefully for ice depths."

    "Also in the Littleton, New Hampshire area is a small pond with great pike potential—Partridge Pond. You probably won't get the huge pike that are likely in the Moore Reservoir, but it's easy fishing and small enough to be comfortable on windy days."

    "Maine's musky waters are confined to the upper Aroostook County area and the St. John River watershed. These muskies migrated from a Canadian lake that had been stocked with musky by the Canadian government. Glazier and Baker Lake are the two main musky lakes but now the musky have spread down the Saint John river and may be available just about anywhere downstream."     "The Belgrade Lakes Region is Maine's best pike waters and the Belgrade Lakes themselves are very productive. Long Pond and Great Pond are known for large pike while Sabattus Lake will provide a lot of action with average sized pike—which are much larger than your average sized trout, salmon or bass."

    "Besides the use of large baits, you have to gear up for these big fish. Tip-ups with large spools will offer a lot less resistance to the pull of a fish and can hold a lot of line, a necessity when after these big fish. Wire leaders are also a necessity but you don't have to go real long with them—a foot of wire should be plenty and pound-tests of eighteen to thirty should be sufficient. A six-foot length of 25-pound fluorocarbon leader and close to a hundred yards of good running line will complete your rig. Wide gap hooks are also a plus to allow good hooking ability when fishing big baitfish."

    "One of the problems with fishing big baitfish is that an active bait will often trip your tip-up. One solution to this is to use a pinch-tab type of line release fastened to your tip up frame just above your spool. A wire tie will fasten the line release. Don't make the mistake of putting your line too far into the jaws of the release—try it manually a few times to figure the best setting for the release."

    "As the spawning season comes, you need to move your fishing activities into shallow areas and coves. Spread out your tip ups and be active in checking them. A big pike will sometimes watch a bait for a long time before making a move on it. Sometimes just walking easily up to a tip up, lifting it up a foot or so and then dropping it back will be all it takes to entice a smashing hit."

    "In lakes where the pike are not appreciated by the fisheries people, catch and keep is urged. In a pike lake where pike are appreciated, catch and release can give you the satisfaction of knowing that big fish is there to be caught again, possibly by you," Henson ended.

    Craig Bergeron at Saco Bay Tackle reported that a lot of his customers are targeting black crappie, with Little Ossipee Lake in Waterboro and Wadleigh's Pond in Dayton both providing fast action.