If you have not had a chance to fish the Moosehead Lake region in Maine (Penboscot, Kentabec, Moose, Roach Rivers), you need to plan a trip. They are some of the few rivers where you can still catch wild atlantic salmon in good numbers, some fish up to 25/26 inches too.
Anyway, my old man has a place up there and I fish every year. Fished the Brassau dam then worked down stream on the first day, caught 7 salmon and one nice brook trout. All fish were between 12 to 16 inches, nothing too big but oh well. At the dam, we caught it right, they had the turbines on and smelt was getting chopped up and going into the dam pool, when that happens, swear to god there would be 20 to 30 salmon hitting the surface at the same time. It was CRAZY. Used a smelt fly and it was getting hammered.
Fished the Kentabec on the second day, fishing nymphs and some streamers. Dad and I caught 11 fish that day with the biggest being 20 inches.
On the third day we fished with his buddy who has a Mckensise boat and hit the Penobscot river. Found a slow eddie and caught a couple of nice brook trout and then got a few salmon, biggest again around 20 inches.
No huge fish but lots of action. Its amazing and so freaking remote up there. Like another planet. Here are some pics…din’t get to many of the fish as I did not want to fumble with a camera while being in waist high water!
Oh, last but not least, my old man is on a large pond with locked in salmon and trout. Its not really fly fishing, we drag sinking fly lines around and troll, but its something to do for an hour or two. Caught a bunch that way.
Good to see the old Medalist reel and the Lamiglass (solid fiberglass) rod still can catch fish. Great picts.
man, that medalist and glass is 30 years old. My old man has had them since the mid 70’s!
I broke an old Trident Orvis rod a couple years ago. They replaced it with the top of their line rod BUT, I still miss the old Trident. Tradition is good in fishing!
It’s great fishing up there. I’ve stayed up there a few times. Nothing better than catching one of the native trout or salmon. Could be one of the prettiest fish anywhere. Great pics man!!
