Fishing in Maine :
The following links will give you a short description of the types of lakes and fish you will find in the Penobscot region of Maine.

Information below was provided by A Fisherman's Guide to Maine.

Penobscot

HISTORY
The vast majority of land in this region is less than 400 feet above sea level. And during the last ice age, the tremendous weight of the 1-mile thick sheet of ice that covered it, caused the elevation in much of this area to be significantly lower than it is today. Therefore, when the glaciers retreated about 12,000 years ago, most of this land was covered by the Atlantic Ocean. After the weight of the ice removed, the land slowly uplifted and trapped much of the water into the vast network of lakes, bogs and streams that now characterize this area.

Atlantic salmon were trapped in the St. Croix and Union River watersheds when the ocean receded. These fish adapted well to fresh water and evolved into the landlocked salmon that we catch today. The Downeast region is the ancestral home of Maine landlocked salmon, because three of the state’s five original populations developed in Green, West Grand and East Grand Lakes. But historically, brook trout were the most widely distributed coldwater species and dominated nearly every watershed in the region. Togue and whitefish are also native and thrived in many of the area’s deep oligotrophic lakes. In warm water habitats, white perch were found at the top of most food chains because smallmouth bass and pickerel were not introduced here until around 1900. Biologists think that a lack of competition from these two voracious predators allowed brook trout to be more widely distributed in marginal habitats than they are today.

The earliest accounts of sport fishing in the Downeast region were published as early as 1830. And by 1850, Grand Lake Stream was a well-known angling destination. Most sports traveled to Calais by steamer and then hired a Passamaquoddy Indian guide to transport them by canoe from Grand Falls Flowage to Gould's Landing. Despite the effort required to get to Grand Lake Stream, Minnie Atkinson reported in her book on the history of the area that, "throughout the 1850’s and 1860’s, sometimes as many as 50 tents would dot the woods along the sides of the stream during the spring season." She also noted that, “All of the salmon fishing was done in Grand Lake Stream itself, or in the moving water located just above the dam. And outings where sports would catch upwards of 20 fish that averaged two pounds or better were not unusual.”

The region changed dramatically in 1870 when the Shaw Brothers of Boston built a tannery along the east bank of Grand Lake Stream. Within a year, hundreds of workers descended on this area to build a sawmill, dig a canal, and erect several dozen buildings that were needed to serve the tannery and its employees. This site was chosen because it was surrounded by forests that could provide a steady supply of hemlock bark, which was a critical element in the leather tanning process. Business boomed, and within 5-years, thousands of hides were shipped to Grand Lake Stream each year from places as far away as California, Argentina and India. Supporting the world’s largest tannery had a serious negative impact on the environment throughout the Downeast region though, and during the peak of its operation, Grand Lake Stream itself was little more than an open sewer which was filled with hair, skin, sawdust and chemicals.

Despite all of this pollution, the fish survived. And when the tannery was ravaged by fire and halted operations in 1887, Minnie Atkinson wrote that "the people in the village turned their attention from the humble job of providing sole leather for the world, to the pleasanter task of catering to its pleasures and its health." Most of the men in Grand Lake Stream quickly evolved from laborers into guides, and a half dozen sporting camps were built to accommodate the needs of visiting anglers. Two of the finest, the White House (circa. 1888) and Ouananiche Lodge (circa. 1893), are still in operation today under the names of Weatherby's Resort and the Colonial Sportsman’s Lodge.

Early in the post-tannery era, craftsmen living in Grand Lake Stream developed and refined the Grand Lake canoe, which has now become the defining feature of this area. Evolved from the birch bark canoes that were used by the Passamaquoddys and other local tribes, the first Grand Lakers were wood and canvas double-enders that were built to be paddled. Steamships like the H.L. Drake were used to ferry rafts of canoes to distant parts of the lakes, and then guides would paddle their sports along the shoreline as they fished. Shortly after Ole Evinrude produced his first outboard around the turn of the century however, the idea of building a square-stern Grand Laker that could accommodate a motor soon followed.

Billy Galley and Nye Whiting are credited with building the first square-stern Grand Lake style canoe in 1904. And from most accounts, it was narrow, sat low in the water and was quite unstable. This made it nearly worthless as a fishing boat on the West Grand chain of lakes. During the next 20 years however, a number of local guides, including Joe Sprague, Arthur Wheaton and Herb ‘Beaver’ Bacon, improved this design and created their own unique models of square-stern canoes. All these boats were around 19 feet long and had a very narrow stern. That was because outboard motors from this era had no water pumps and could not be operated at trolling speed. So canoes had to be small enough to allow guides to paddle them while their sports fished. The trend to make Grand Lakers longer, broader and flatter began in the 1940’s after improvements to outboards facilitated motorized trolling. Today, many designs called Grand Lakers are much more boat-like than the originals because many people no longer have the need, or desire, to paddle them.

COLDWATER LAKES
The Downeast region has nearly 50 coldwater lakes that provide good fishing opportunities for salmon, togue, whitefish, splake, brook trout and brown trout. Detailed descriptions will only be provided for the area’s two most popular destinations, West Grand and East Grand Lakes. All other salmonid fisheries will be categorized geographically as either ‘south of Route 9’ or ‘north of Route 9’ and discussed under those headings.

West Grand Lake
West Grand is a sprawling 14,300-acre body of water that is divided into a number of smaller sections by several prominent coves, points and large islands. The village of Grand Lake Stream is located at the outlet and has the best boat launch on the lake. The village also provides a full line of lodging and guide services and has several paved roads. The remainder of the lake’s 150 miles of wooded shoreline is only accessible by water and almost completely wild.

Department of Inland Fisheries surveys indicate that salmon are the principle target for most of the people who fish West Grand, and that nearly 75% of the 15,000 angler days of use take place here between ice-out and the last week of June. Despite this fairly heavy fishing pressure, salmon average around 2-pounds and are caught at a higher rate than other local waters. This good fishing is due to the lake’s thriving smelt population and the catch and release ethic that has been promoted by local sporting camps and guides.

Good areas to troll that are fairly close to the boat launch include Munson Island, Big Mayberry Cove, Kitchen Point and Dyer Point. Many people also fish the rugged north east shore in the vicinity of Bear Trap Landing, Pineo Point, Mark’s Island, Hardwood Island and Whitney Cove. I catch lots of fish in the spring along the south west shore around Norway Point, Birch Island and Coffin Point. Beyond the Narrows, West Grand is connected to a number of other large lakes such as Junior, Pocumpus, Sysladobsis and Scraggly. To avoid the long boat ride from Grand Lake Stream, many people who fish these outlying lakes trailer their boats to one of the smaller launches located at Elsemore Landing, Sysladobsis Dam or Bottle Lake.

A variety of trolling methods are used successfully on West Grand chain of lakes. Just after ice out, sewn smelts fished behind a flashing spoon or dodger account for many good salmon. Rapalas, Yo-zuris, Mooselook Wobblers and other assorted hardware can also be effective, especially when fished close to the boat in the prop wash from the outboard motor. Trolling a streamer fly close to the rocks with a fly rod is my favorite way to fish here. The use of ‘fly-bait’ is a local modification of tradition streamer fishing that has proved to be effective. As the name implies, fly-bait involves attaching a small piece of bait to your fly. Typically a small shiner is added to a single hooked streamer. Originally developed by Grand Lake Stream guides to help give their sports an edge over the competition, this combination is still deadly today, especially when fished slowly on a sinking line in areas where fish show up on the fish finder but are reluctant to strike. West Grand also yields many good togue to anglers who use lead-core line to work large spoons with sewn bait along the bottom.

East Grand Lake
East Grand is a 16,000-acre lake whose east-shore lies in Canada. Boat launches accessible from the US side are located on the south shore at Greenland Cove and Butterfield Landing, and on the north shore near Orient. Although much of the lake is undeveloped, shorelines in the Arm, Greenland Cove, Dark Cove and Orient have many camps. The town of Danforth is located near the southwest end of the lake and has gas, groceries and a couple of small restaurants. Anglers staying at sporting camps typically obtain meals and other essentials such as bait, tackle and guides at these establishments.

East Grand has traditionally been a salmon lake that produced many football-shaped specimens in the 4-pound range. From ice-out through June, popular places to troll include Little River Cove, Hayes Point, Five-Islands and the southwest shore between the mouth of Greenland Cove and Meetinghouse Point. Everything from hardware to smelts sewn behind a dodger can produce well in the spring, but if I had to choose just one method, it would be a tandem Joe’s Smelt trolled briskly with a sinking line and 15 foot leader. Many salmon are also taken during the summer months, mainly by locals or guides, who use lead-line or downriggers to get their offerings down below the thermocline. Large togue are present in the deep sections of East Grand and are usually caught by people specifically fishing for them with heavy gear.

South of Route 9
There are many other Downeast lakes located within 20-miles of the coast that also support healthy populations of salmonids. Green, Branch, Phillips, Beech Hill and Brewer Lakes are all close to Routes 1A and have hundreds of camps on them. Despite heavy open-water and ice fishing pressure however, good numbers of well proportioned salmon are regularly taken here. In large part, this is due to a sound fisheries management plan that includes both a reduction in the number of salmon that are stocked and a ban on the dipping of smelts from the spawning brooks. Togue fishing is also surprisingly good in these popular lakes, and I know several people who use lead line to catch fish that average 3-pounds all summer long. Beech Hill is known for producing large togue, and many fish over 15-pounds, including the long-time state record of 31-pounds, have been landed here. Green is my favorite local lake, and I usually fish at the mouth of Great Brook when the smelts are running in April, or near the sandbar on the east end of the lake.

Farther Downeast, good salmon can also be taken at Tunk, Schoodic, Cathance and Nash’s Lake. Since the boat launch to Tunk is located directly on Route 182, it is the most-well known and heavily fished of these waters. Tunk is managed as a trophy fishery and has a one-fish limit. Action can be slow, but bragging size salmon and togue are caught by anglers who patiently troll the shorelines or fish near the 225-foot deep hole at the south end of the lake. Cathance is another good lake that can also be reached from a paved highway (Route 191). Fishing can be erratic here, but during years when the smelt population is healthy and the fish are growing well, this small lake produces a surprising number of hefty salmon in the 4-pound class.

The Downeast region also has a number of lakes where the management strategy has been shifted from salmon to brown trout and splake. According to regional biologist Ron Brokaw, “Back in the 1980’s, we experimented with stocking brown trout and splake in several lakes that only provided a marginal cold water habitat for salmon, and found that they often thrived in places where salmon struggled. Since then, this program has expanded quite a bit, and now produces some of the most popular fisheries in our area.” Many of the best brown trout fisheries are found in the Eastbrook area and include Spectacle, Molasses, Georges and Flanders Ponds. Farther Downeast, browns can also be taken at Bog, Rocky, Patrick and Pennamaquan Lakes. The best splake fishery in the region is probably at Beddington Lake, followed by Pleasant River Lake and Peaked Mountain and Toddy Ponds. None of these places are pure salmonoid fisheries, so anglers should expect to catch pickerel, bass and perch along with these brown trout and splake.

North of Route 9
Good salmon fishing can be found north of Route 9 in West, Alligator and Nicatous Lakes. These are all lightly developed waters that lie within 10 miles of each other on paper company land and can be reached by gravel roads. Because they are close to Bangor, all get fished fairly heavily during both the open-water and ice fishing seasons. As you might imagine, anyone who writes a statewide guidebook on fishing is apt to be more fond and familiar with some areas than others. This group of lakes is among my personal favorites, primarily because they are close to home. Over the years however, I have also seen a number of hefty salmon taken from them. In order to sustain quality fisheries in areas with heavy angling pressure, special regulations must be included in the management plan. So for the past 10-years, Alligator has been one of the few lakes in the state to have a one-fish, 16-20 inch no-kill slot limit designed to allow salmon to reach their full potential. Judging from the all the positive comments I have heard during that period, this program seems to be working. Encouraged by this success, some local anglers believe even more restrictive regulations, including a ‘no-power’ rule both summer and winter, should be instituted here.

Farther Downeast, good salmon fishing can also be found on Big, Lewey, Crawford, Pocomoonshine and Spednick Lakes. But regional biologist Rick Jordan warned that, “For the most part, these are all warmer water lakes that have large populations of bass, and can be prone to cyclic fluctuations in the populations of smelts and the quality of the salmon fishing.” Jordan also noted that brown trout and splake are doing well in places that only provided a marginal habitat for salmon in the past, such as Upper Lead Mountain Pond, Great Pond and Mopang Lake. Since this region has quite a few waters like these, he thinks that the stocking of browns and splake is likely to increase in the future.

GRAND LAKE STREAM
Grand Lake Stream is a 3-mile ribbon of gin-clear water that flows from the dam at the outlet of West Grand Lake. This well-known fly-fishing only stream has provided great salmon fishing for generations of Downeasters. Because of its small size however, Grand Lake Stream isn’t capable of sustaining a resident population of large salmon. Therefore, all of the big fish caught here have spent the majority of their lives feeding on bait fish in the neighboring lakes. Like many other popular rivers in Maine, salmon here are seasonal migrants that are caught when they move into the stream to feed on smelts and aquatic insects in the spring, and to spawn in the fall. What makes Grand Lake Stream special however, is the size of the watershed that it draws fish from, and the sheer numbers of salmon that congregate in some of its pools.

The fishing season on most Maine waters opens April 1, and the big pool below the dam on West Grand Lake is one of the most reliable places in the state to catch an opening day salmon. Many of the fish that spawn in the fall work their way upstream toward the fish ladder at the base of the dam during the winter. So in early April, this deep pool can be jammed with hungry salmon that are willing to strike at a passing fly. Traditional streamers like the Grey Ghost and Black Ghost are usually all that you need to catch fish here, but nymphs and wet flies can also be deadly. Don’t expect football-fat salmon though, because as a result of their spawning ordeal, most are still thin and lack the fight they will have in a couple of months. After a long winter of tying flies and studying maps however, this is a great spot to just get the feel of a fish on your line.

My favorite time to fish Grand Lake Stream is from around Mother’s Day through the middle of June. A reliable hatch of Hendrickson’s is followed by a variety of caddisflies, and impressive numbers of salmon can often be taken on small dead-drifted nymphs and dry flies. The quality of spring fishing here is influenced by how much water was released from the dam earlier in the season. In dry years, when the outflow from West Grand is low in March and April, fewer salmon enter the river than in years when the gates are wide open. Thus, even though a dynamite hatch is coming off, there might not be many fish around to take advantage of it. Conversely, in years when early high water attracts lots of salmon, you can usually do well even when no fish are rising.

Grand Lake Stream is rather small and there are times when some of the pools get crowded and the salmon get spooky. Most of the fishing pressure is concentrated in obvious places like Dam Pool, Hatchery Pool and the picnic area at Little Falls, and can be avoided by simply staying away from these popular spots. Since the stream is only a few miles long, I find that when the fish are in good, they are apt to found almost anywhere. So, when there are lots of people around, I often fish the smaller pockets and riffles that can be reached from the footpath that follows along the east side of the river.

Baitfish imitating streamers like the Grey Ghost and Nine-Three account for many of the salmon taken during the first month or so of the season. After that, more fish are caught on nymphs such as the Hare’s Ear, Tellico, Sparkle Caddis and Brown Stonefly. Dry flies and emergers also produce well when insects are active, and late evenings in June are particularly good for small flies on light tippets. In the fall, many people switch back to streamers and favor bright patterns like the Golden Demon, Montreal Whore and Pink Lady. I find that nymphs also work well at this time of year.