Mainebass1984

It is passable. There are a couple shallow spots where you have to be careful though. I assumer there is still plenty of ice on both Crescent and Panther. The only way t get to the river right now would be by parking on 85. You could toss in a carry top right there.

Cool. Let us know what you find. The river between panther pond and crescent lake is probably open.

Which ponds ?

jig ?

Careful fishing rivers by yourself this time of year. They are still very cold. I have no idea how high and fast the rivers are down your way but all the rivers up here are near flood stage and running mud from the rain and run off. This time of year it is always a good idea to wear a life jacket.

Did you check the R.I fish and game website ? The departments in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont all post them online.

A friend of mine that works for US fish and wildlife emailed me a study on largemouth bass survival on the Housatanic River and Three mile pond. Very interesting stuff. Bass survival from egg to swim varied from nest to nest a high of 68 % with a low of 28 %. Then after 15 days post swim up survival was 19-25 %. Not all fish completely spawned. There were several females that spawned only a portion of the eggs they developed. One female didn't spawn at all. Very interesting stuff. I realize this is only one specific case involving two bodies of water in New England. I am sure there is regional differences in success rate and from nest to nest as well as from pond to pond. If only 19-25 % survived until 15 days post swim up of the 28-68 % that originally swam up then you can surmise that the number of surviving bass is quite low. Not covered in this specific study but, in New England 15 -30 % of the remaining young of the year will survive their first winter.

About 80 % of eggs will hatch. Then with in the next few weeks there will be another die off, first feeding die off. Predators certainly take there toll within the next few weeks. Few will survive to adult hood and there first spawn. Yes mortality is usually very high. If 75-80% of adults don't spawn in the body of water that Franco's DEC report was conducted on then either that body of water has a very high rate of fry reaching adulthood or it is a very large body of water.

I don't think you can compare bass spawning in the deep south to California or any northern state. In February and March everything is still covered in ice up here. We wont see a stable water temperature of 60 degrees in the first layer of the water column until very late May and early June. This coincides with the eggs becoming mature. There are many factors that dictate when they will spawn. That being said every year on the exact same day I go to a specific pond in Maine and catch Smallmouth on beds, and there will be three fish on each bed, two males and one female. This is a great example of a slight difference in bass behavior based on the region you live in. That is pretty amazing. The survival rates of bass fry must be very, very good and it must be water body specific. In a small body of water you would have difficulty supporting a decent bass population with very little reproduction. Is there an online report I could check out ? Very interesting stuff.

Temperature is very important here in New England.

Fishing in the rain is awesome. It also chases all the jet skies and power boats off the lake.

People are already fishing cobb stream

When you find open water let me know ! I am beyond ready to go ! It looks like Vermont still has a couple weeks or so. Looks like Maine will be the first place I go.

Frog and a Jig... Both catch bigger fish. A few big bites is better then 12 2 lb bites come tournament day.

Still plenty of snow and ice up here. Another place for you to try is the bridge at the sand bar. There is open water there. Some good fish get caught right there too. St. Albans bridge may be open as well.

1. Catch a 10 lb bass 2. Win several open tournaments. 3. Catch 50 bass over 5 lbs in 2014 ( Last year ended with 31) All in New England, mostly in Maine and Vermont. Most importantly Have fun and catch fish !

Laying them directly on the ground should be avoided. Laying them down on a wet towel prevents much of the slime coat from being removed. Removal of the slime coating does make them more susceptible to diseases until the slime coat is replenished. Luckily they start to replenish the slime coat as soon as it is lost. They also are continually replenishing, refreshing this slime coat for the duration of their lives.

Any luck fishing the Wipooski ? From Wipooski one hydro to Lake Champlain is closed until June 1st.

Senkos are deadly. I catch fish on them year round, even ice fishing with a jigging rod.

I am sure everyone will be bring there "A" game. Once the ice melts It will be game on.

Its going to take one heck of a largemouth to beat Dwight. Last year I wasn't able to break 7 lb mark for this contest. Hopefully that will change this year.

When I am burning a spinnerbait I use double or single willow blades. When I am using double Colorado blades I tend to be slow rolling it.

I always bring out more trash then I bring in. I hate seeing garbage and litter on the lakes, ponds, and rivers I fish. It is disgusting and it infuriates me. It is to bad some people are such dirty slobs.