I had the day off and the weather was perfect. A fishing trip was in order; after all I do not always get to have a rod in my hands on such a perfect morning. I fished Quantabacook Lake in Searsmont; I fish there every few years and rarely with clients because it is so far away to make into a half day trip.
Now is the time for some of the most interesting bass fishing of the year. I was on one of my favorite ponds yesterday and the bass were very close to actively defending those depressions in the bottom. I saw many although only a few had fish on them. I am guessing that the next couple of warm sunny days will make all of the difference here in the mid coast.
In a big way this year, clearly all of the conservation efforts have paid off on the Maine coast. I hear that they are in trouble in southern New England but the runs locally are astounding. I suspect that the changes in our river systems really favor their production now. We visited the Damariscotta Mills fish ladder Monday evening with friends and I cannot remember ever seeing more fish in the ladder. The stream was black with fish, in fact the gulls were so full that they were no longer fighting over fish.
