Apologies if this crosses a line - I know we mainly discuss PA fishing, but several members here are well traveled. My Daughter will be moving to Henniker in the next 6 months or so. I was wondering what the fishing is like (in general for both spin and fly). I saw a stocking map and it looks like there is a decent number of waters that are stocked, including one that goes right past/thru Henniker. Anyone have any insights?
Fishing in NewHampshire
- Thread starter hockeyref
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TimMurphy
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Dear hocketref,
Due to poor geology NH relies on stocked fish even more than PA. The granite does don't buffer rain and snow very well. That said, there are still many streams worth fishing. NH is also blessed with lots of ponds and lakes. Many streams and ponds have special regulations for trout similar to PA.
You can find a lot of information on the NH Fish and Game website. If you need help or suggestions, feel free to message me.
Regards,
Tim Murphy 🙂
Due to poor geology NH relies on stocked fish even more than PA. The granite does don't buffer rain and snow very well. That said, there are still many streams worth fishing. NH is also blessed with lots of ponds and lakes. Many streams and ponds have special regulations for trout similar to PA.
You can find a lot of information on the NH Fish and Game website. If you need help or suggestions, feel free to message me.
Regards,
Tim Murphy 🙂
Dr.J 1952
Active member
The Connecticut River starts as a tailwater near Pittsburg,NH. It has a fly fishing section. There is an Orvis video of George Daniels showing Tom Rosebauer how to Euro nymph. You should be able to find it on Youtube.
hooker-of-men
Well-known member
I don't know Henniker, but I've fished the White Mountains a number of times and had a lot of fun. That would be ~1.5 hours north. There are lots of small wild brookies in the small streams and stocked big brookies and decent browns in the larger water. A sampling is below.
Henniker would also only be an hour drive to some easy access striper spots. Not a bad jumping off point.
Henniker would also only be an hour drive to some easy access striper spots. Not a bad jumping off point.
JimKennedy
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The Connecticut River at and up from Pittsburg, NH, is 3+ hours from Henniker, but if I lived in NH, I'd hit it a couple of times per year. The fly - trophy section is like Pennsylvania FFO Trophy Trout streams of the 1970s. Massive amounts of stocked trout, plus some landlocked salmon that are either wild or stocked as fingerlings. There's another fly section, downstream from Second Connecticut Lake to First Connecticut Lake that is all wild brook trout, supposedly with some atlantics running in the fall. If I lived up that way, I'd hit the wild FFO section in the morning and when I had my fill of 5 to 10 inch wild brook trout, I'd go down and fish for the stockers in the "trophy section" and hope to hook into a nice Atlantic.
Two of my cousins and I fished it this past spring. I had wanted to fish that upper Connecticut since I read about it in Field and Stream in the 1970s. It wasn't a disappointment, but it was not the destination spot I had daydreamed about.
Henniker is closer to the lakes region. Smallmouth, pike, and (if you're into it) yellow perch fishing in the big lakes can be very good. I talked to some folks who trailed streamers off downriggers to catch big steelies in deep water (80 feet+), but I never invested in that kind of equipment.
My family vacationed in the lakes district for many summers, and, though I tried, I failed to find any trout fishing in that territory at that time of year. It seemed like the streams and small rivers were devoid of all fish. That territory is mostly dependent on stocked trout, with a some lake runners in the spring and fall (though I never hit that). I was never up there in the spring or autumn, but there is supposedly good winter and springtime fishing for big trout and landlocked salmon running out of the lakes.
A quick note: when I was a kid, I read extensively about the brook trout ponds in New Hampshire, while vacationing up there, I found one and went to fish it in mid summer. Total bust. There were campfire pits every 10 feet along the shore, presumably as a result of springtime meathole fishing. I didn't even see a sunny in the pond, though the scenery was nice and the water was clear and cold. Turns out that brook trout pond experience in the modern era is entirely dependent on stocked fish.
In general, my understanding is landlockeds running out of the lakes (especially into the Connecticut) happens in the fall for the spawn and in the spring when the smelt are on their spawning run.
The one place I never tried, but would invest some time trying if I lived in that area is the Merrimack River, which essentially drains the Lakes Region.
From a trout (and salmon) perspective, if I were to give Maryland and Pennsylvania a B to B+ (the plus for effort), I would give New Hampshire a C- from an angling perspective and an F for effort. Stocking trout in meat holes is not a management strategy. And I realize there's an acid rain problem, but there is absolutely no effort at mitigation such as we have in Pennsylvania and Maryland for coal mine acid.
When I was vacationing there, someone described New Hampshire as "the West Virginia of New England." I'm inclined to agree. Once you leave the tourist areas such as the lakes district, there are vast swaths of land that have been stripped of resources and left to erode. I suspect it's a lot like what Pennsylvania looked like in the late 1800s after it's forests had been mostly clear cut to make railroad ties for the transcontinental railroad.
Two of my cousins and I fished it this past spring. I had wanted to fish that upper Connecticut since I read about it in Field and Stream in the 1970s. It wasn't a disappointment, but it was not the destination spot I had daydreamed about.
Henniker is closer to the lakes region. Smallmouth, pike, and (if you're into it) yellow perch fishing in the big lakes can be very good. I talked to some folks who trailed streamers off downriggers to catch big steelies in deep water (80 feet+), but I never invested in that kind of equipment.
My family vacationed in the lakes district for many summers, and, though I tried, I failed to find any trout fishing in that territory at that time of year. It seemed like the streams and small rivers were devoid of all fish. That territory is mostly dependent on stocked trout, with a some lake runners in the spring and fall (though I never hit that). I was never up there in the spring or autumn, but there is supposedly good winter and springtime fishing for big trout and landlocked salmon running out of the lakes.
A quick note: when I was a kid, I read extensively about the brook trout ponds in New Hampshire, while vacationing up there, I found one and went to fish it in mid summer. Total bust. There were campfire pits every 10 feet along the shore, presumably as a result of springtime meathole fishing. I didn't even see a sunny in the pond, though the scenery was nice and the water was clear and cold. Turns out that brook trout pond experience in the modern era is entirely dependent on stocked fish.
In general, my understanding is landlockeds running out of the lakes (especially into the Connecticut) happens in the fall for the spawn and in the spring when the smelt are on their spawning run.
The one place I never tried, but would invest some time trying if I lived in that area is the Merrimack River, which essentially drains the Lakes Region.
From a trout (and salmon) perspective, if I were to give Maryland and Pennsylvania a B to B+ (the plus for effort), I would give New Hampshire a C- from an angling perspective and an F for effort. Stocking trout in meat holes is not a management strategy. And I realize there's an acid rain problem, but there is absolutely no effort at mitigation such as we have in Pennsylvania and Maryland for coal mine acid.
When I was vacationing there, someone described New Hampshire as "the West Virginia of New England." I'm inclined to agree. Once you leave the tourist areas such as the lakes district, there are vast swaths of land that have been stripped of resources and left to erode. I suspect it's a lot like what Pennsylvania looked like in the late 1800s after it's forests had been mostly clear cut to make railroad ties for the transcontinental railroad.
Resources like timber and granite? Are you referring to north of the Lakes Region? My wife’s sister moved to Southern New Hampshire.
She taught school in Derry and her husband worked for Parker Brothers. They were like a lot of people moving across the state
Line for Lower taxes. Some really neat little towns with great flea markets. I bought a number of cool old books. I would guess the urban sprawl starting to develop is really bad now in that region. That was close to 20 years ago. There were a
Number of
Small lakes close by. They had a very
Small pond behind the house they built and we caught some perch and bass. I drove up to fish the Sugar River which runs out of Sunapee.
Water Was Warm by June even though they claimed it was part of an Atlantic Salmon restoration. That’s the problem with many of those streams they are fed by warm lakes.
She taught school in Derry and her husband worked for Parker Brothers. They were like a lot of people moving across the state
Line for Lower taxes. Some really neat little towns with great flea markets. I bought a number of cool old books. I would guess the urban sprawl starting to develop is really bad now in that region. That was close to 20 years ago. There were a
Number of
Small lakes close by. They had a very
Small pond behind the house they built and we caught some perch and bass. I drove up to fish the Sugar River which runs out of Sunapee.
Water Was Warm by June even though they claimed it was part of an Atlantic Salmon restoration. That’s the problem with many of those streams they are fed by warm lakes.
moorestowngreg
New member
If you are willing to drive a couple of hours, the Androscoggin River from Errol and downstream has some very good fishing. It's been several years since I fished it, but it was and is worth the trip if you have the time. It is big water but there is some good wading. You'll find rainbow, brown, brook and LL salmon there. What percent are stocked and what percent are wild I can't tell you. But I can tell you there are some big fish there.
tjsingle
Well-known member
Its really nice water up that way. There's some guides that'll float it too for trout. Lots of fishy places
CRB
Well-known member
Shore fishing is not bad for stripers about 1.5 hours east near Portsmouth, Great Bay. I lived in Rochester for a bit. Some trout in the area but as others said dependent on stockies.
TimMurphy
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Dear hockeyref,
I just want to say more about the lakes and ponds. While you seem to be asking mostly about trout the bass and panfish fishing can me quite good. There are ponds the size of a farm pond to lakes larger than Raystown to explore and many of them offer good fishing and easy access.
I've taken vacations to New Hampshire. My wife is from there and have had days on beautiful ponds with good bass fishing and scarcely saw a soul except for the mailman or an occasional car that passed by. Some ponds get almost zero fishing pressure, and the fishing benefits from that.
Once you now more about where you are going to be and when check out these maps from NHF&G. They give descriptions of the lakes with fish species present as well as access points for both boats and on foot. They are a real treasure to me when I explore.
Regards,
Tim Murphy 🙂
P.S. I'll second the striper fishing in the Great Bay and Piscataqua River too. I've done several trips with a guide fly fishing for stripers and have always had fun. If you want his name, send me a message.
I just want to say more about the lakes and ponds. While you seem to be asking mostly about trout the bass and panfish fishing can me quite good. There are ponds the size of a farm pond to lakes larger than Raystown to explore and many of them offer good fishing and easy access.
I've taken vacations to New Hampshire. My wife is from there and have had days on beautiful ponds with good bass fishing and scarcely saw a soul except for the mailman or an occasional car that passed by. Some ponds get almost zero fishing pressure, and the fishing benefits from that.
Once you now more about where you are going to be and when check out these maps from NHF&G. They give descriptions of the lakes with fish species present as well as access points for both boats and on foot. They are a real treasure to me when I explore.
Regards,
Tim Murphy 🙂
P.S. I'll second the striper fishing in the Great Bay and Piscataqua River too. I've done several trips with a guide fly fishing for stripers and have always had fun. If you want his name, send me a message.
