Piscataqua Returns To Dead River Form

[mumichog]

Ah, yes, the last trip was too good to be true. Our unaffectionately nicknamed 'Dead River' earned it moniker this time out with many fewer bass seen and even fewer caught; as in one, 12" long!

The bass up in shallows had absolute lockjaw, refusing even live eels with hardly a sniff. The bass out front were vactioning in Chatham, except for the little foot long brat they left home alone.

Sure, the cool NW wind didn't help matters but the same conditions down on the Cape, for instance, do not mean a virtual shut out.

After 4+ hrs OTW, we closed the evening drifting along the edge of long board flat draining last one foot of its water of quickly over an edge into 10 ft. The main river current caught the runoff and pushed it nearly perpendicular to the flat edge causing fine swirls and eddies in knee deep water right out into the nearby deeper stuff. We hammered the spot with the full arsenal, eels, lures, flies, and came up without even a HIT. There is something sad about seeing zero activity in such a fine spot, a spot which down on the Cape (again) would be, at the very least, inundated with scrappy schoolies. Ugh......

[Mig's]

What's the story with this river? I've not fished it until this year and admittedly still don’t know it very well. Still my experience has been that the Merrimack and Plum Island area are far better. I’d be interested in seeing what feedback some of you guys who’ve been around for a while have.

btw… I have my boat at Great Bay Marine (a pretty nice place by the way).

[Living Waters]

I have found all striper fishing this year in NH slower. The IOS, shoreline,estuaries and even the Mack, (not in NH yet but soon), are not producing the bigger fish as in previous years. Hopefully, this is just cyclical.

[Touching Cloth]

tons of peanut bunker in little bay/gret bay. on the route 4 bridge, it's stacked up super thck.

[Piscat Guide]

The Piscataqua has been fishing much differently this year ---- Lack of bait because of the early season wash out conditions has meant an extreme lack of bait in the river and estuary this year. Fishing the river structure has been more important this year both in the river and along the shoreline. Lots of big fish this year have been taken by the live bait crowd this year ----- the lack of surface feeds this year has been unbelievable --as in previous years there were surface feeds almost every am with decent tides.
One thing will never change about this river --it is big water and much different from the Merrimack in terms of bait --- size -- fishing pressure ---- and holds some very large fish for the fly rodder who is willing to in his time on the river to learn it . Much different then just drifting on Joppa on the Merrimack.
Still a few more weeks for the river to show its stuff

[Frog]

THere are none so blind as he who will not see. /This river is not dead at all. For the last week or so the fish have turned on. We are catching lots of decent fish including some big slot fish.


THese fish are busting on the surface and active, Maybe you should look around?

[tmillerzzz]

My observations/thoughts...most of which have allready been stated.

The Spring rains really screwed up the river and spring striper forage...There was a pretty big lobster kill due to all the fresh water and the Herring did their thing but over a month later than usual. I think the Pizcat is different from the Merrimack because of Great Bay (huge resevoir). IBecause of Great Bay it took the river A LOT longer to flush out and get back to norm than the Merrimack. We still had dirty water mid July.

There were still big fish caught in the river this year, but people REALLY had to work for them and everyone I know went VERY VERY DEEP for them. My neighbor did well with his Salmon trolling rigs (Lead Core) and BIG storm shads.

The coastal fishing along the rocks was pretty good to me during the "summer doldrums", not crazy, but good.

There is A LOT of Peanuts and shrimp and maybe some silver sides in the little bay area right now and there are beginning to be some surface feeds there.

In all I think the fall will "normal up" but not be spectacular.