Beverly Bassman

It is impressive the way people on this thread offer to help each other. Something about bass fishing brings out the good nature in a lot of people. I am new to this group, but you all seem like a good group of people. I hope you don't hold it against me that I am from Massachusetts. When I was growing up, we had a small place on Eastman Lake in Grantham, NH. My Dad lives there now, so that is my official tie to NH. BTW, Eastman is not a bad smallmouth fishery. Not much in the way of size, but good numbers. I caught 19 smallmouth and a couple of largemouth there in one day last September. There is a decent ramp there any boat can launch, though there is a 10 mph speed restriction. It is a nice, quiet place. If you are ever up 89 just past New London, you can check it out.

I agree. It is very annoying. There are a lot of people like us who just want to go out on the water, quietly fish with a friend, son or daughter, admire the scenery, respect the lake and the homeowners, take care of the fish, release them where caught, etc. But we don't want to spend all day searching to catch two or three mediocre fish. Our access to quality fishing is being cut off because of the actions of water skiiers, jet skiiers, bass tournaments and others who do not respect the rights of the locals. So the locals lobby to close off the access. Then the remaining fisheries that do have access see the fishing go downhill. Didn't Cobbetts used to have a key system like BIP? In the older versions of the Clark book something like that is mentioned (though it is crossed off in the blue version). In the newer green version of the book, he points out that access was taken away. This direction will only change if there is a more organized lobbying effort from fisherman. The laws in NH seem to allow the local cities and towns to take control. I don't know if Fish & Game can even do anything. Sorry to keep bringing this up, but in Minnesota, this is not legal, so access remains great everywhere.

A lot of lake residents have experienced or heard about bass tournaments. Large numbers of over-powered bass boats go roaring around the lake, acting like they own the place, firing lures right onto the docks, churning up the lake, catching lots of big fish which are all released at the ramp. Some die right away (~4%), some experience delayed mortality (~20%), and only about 20% of the surviving fish return to their old locations. Over time, the fishing at that lake gets ruined. This is happening right now to BIP. For any years, they only allowed 2 tournaments per year. This year I count 12, and I don't even have the schedule from June and earlier. The casual weekend fisherman is losing access, in part, because of the negative aspects of tournaments. My wife's family owns a lake house up in Minnesota. It has incredible bass fishing, with the locals mainly targeting pike/musky. But forget fishing on a tournament weekend.

unhbass37, I am on the north side, off Grover St. I have a 17' fiberglass bass boat. I am an expert at launching it at places people don't think I can. But it's still frustrating there are so few places to fish. I learned to bass fish in Minnesota where all lakes have public ramps, most paved. And fish & game pays attention to fishery quality. I have been considering getting a Hobie kayak and focusing on smaller ponds. Beverly Bassman

Regarding Kingston Lake, is the parking for residents only? If not, can I launch a bass boat in there? I have 4WD and am used to rough launches.

Massabesic - what are the views on this fishery? The few comments here are very mixed. It's a hike for me but the places in southern NH with public access for trailered boats are few and far between. I have been fishing Big Isand Pond with mediocre results. They are having a tournament there almost every weekend now. The place is too small to sustain that. The good spots and good bite that used to exist have dried up (at least the day after tournaments, and forget fishing the day of, as they take up all the parking. I thought Massabesic may be worth a try. The place is so big, with relatively small public launch parking, it would seem to be able to withstand the pressure it gets. I gather there is a lot of shore and cartop fishing, I have fished lakes this size in Minnesota, and it takes a while to find the active areas where fish are holding, but when you do, you can catch them pretty well. Thoughts!

NH Bassin: Great job getting those big fish cranking in deeper water! Nice fish!! Congrats. I have been struggling with the shallow water bite the last few weeks. Senkos, Rage Roosters, shaky head and spinnerbaits have resulted in three total fish the last three outing. I have definitely tried some deep cranking, but haven't had luck with that either. And I've been using the Strike King sexy shad pattern. Any particular approach you used to locate fish? There's an awful lot of 12 to 18 foot water in a lake. Do you target the deeper areas immediately out from areas that you know are good shoreline areas? Ledges and drop offs? Any other ideas? I'm beginning to feel like I am wearing fish repellant. Any thoughts or suggestions?

I am from the North Shore. Would love to hear your spots and will share my own. I am pretty sick of the poor fishing at Chebacco Lake near my house. Size is possible there, but numbers are terrible, and there are maniac water skiers all the time. I have an 18 foot bass boat, so I need places with decent ramps. I have had spotty results at Sluice Pond in Lynn. I hit Rock Pond in Georgetown once in a while, and always catch bass, but even one-pounders are rare. That place is a dink haven. There aren't many other choices on the North Shore. So I need some alternatives. I have not tried the lake in Wakefield, which I'm told does have a ramp, but has a 10HP motor restriction. Any other thoughts? I also hit some smaller places for shore fishing. I am happy to mention those, although none are anything to write home about.