About one dozen ponds in Somerset County, Maine, were stocked in the fall of 2012 with brook trout, brown trout, rainbow trout and/or splake to support ice fishing during the winter of 2013. Most of the stocked trout are relatively small (7” to 11”), but plentiful, in order to provide fast action on the ice.
The state also spices-up several of these ponds with bigger trout, which I define here as fish measuring 12” or more. This blog highlight the ponds (presented in alphabetical order) in Somerset County where ice fishermen have the best odds of catching those larger fish. It is recommended to consult the latest law book (available at http://www.eregulations.com/maine/fishing/) about special ice fishing rules that may apply on the ponds described below. Note also that the list excludes “kids only” ponds.
Keep in mind that the number of bigger trout stocked in a pond is typically much lower than for the smaller trout. Hence, patience is required to catch one of those larger fish. As a rough comparison, the average stocking rate for landlocked salmon in Maine is about 0.5 salmon per acre (which is equivalent to 1 salmon every two acres).
I did my utmost best to verify that a particular pond is indeed open for ice fishing, but I make no guarantees whatsoever that my interpretation of the convoluted Maine fishing rules is accurate or correct. It is up to each reader of this blog to ensure that the ponds listed below can be fished through the ice.
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Baker Pond covers 58 acres and is located at the end of Baker Pond Lane off Drury Road in Solon (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 30 E5). Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. This pond was stocked in the fall of 2012 with big brook trout (100 fish of 13”) and big brown trout (100 fish of 14”), which yields about 3 large trout per acre.
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Indian Pond covers 53 acres and is located to the north of Route 16 in Lexington Township (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 30 E1). Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. This pond was stocked in the fall of 2012 with big brook trout (200 fish of 13”), which yields about 4 large trout per acre.
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Lake George covers 335 acres and is located alongside Lake George Drive off Route 2 in Canaan (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 21 B2). Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. This pond was stocked in the fall of 2012 with big brook trout (120 fish of 13” and 350 fish of 14”), big brown trout (20 fish of 23”) and big rainbow trout (400 fish of 14”) , which yields about 3 large trout per acre.
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Sandy Pond covers 107 acres and is located alongside Fahi Pond Road in Embden (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 20 A3). Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. This pond was stocked in the fall of 2012 with big brook trout (200 fish of 13”) and big brown trout (200 fish of 14”), which yields about 4 large trout per acre.
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Smith Pond covers 160 acres and is located just to the west of Route 151 in Brighton Plantation (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 31 D1). Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. This pond was stocked in the fall of 2012 with big brook trout (300 fish of 13”) and big brown trout (400 fish of 14”), which yields about 4 large trout per acre.
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Wentworth Pond – also known as Ironbound Pond – covers 213 acres and is located at the end of Pond Road off North Road in Solon (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 31 E1). Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. This pond was stocked in the fall of 2012 with big brook trout (450 fish of 14”) and big splake (400 fish of 14”), which yields about 4 large trout per acre.
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Wesserunsett Lake covers 1446 acres and is located just to the east of Route 201 in Madison (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 20 A5). Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information. This pond was stocked in the fall of 2012 with big brook trout (187 fish of 12”, 1000 fish of 13”, 1450 fish of 14”, and 55 fish of 17”) and big brown trout (2150 fish of 14” and 80 fish of 18”), which yields about 3 large trout per acre.
Was the information in this blog useful? I invite you to share your thoughts and opinions by posting a comment. Also, feel free to tell us about your fishing experiencs on any of the ponds presented above.
