Androscoggin River Report provided by:


SANDY MacGREGOR—MASTER OF THE ANDROSCOGGIN




June 3rd Water temp 58.25 Flow rate 6110 CFS @ Mead Westvaco in Rumford. The fishing is PRIME! There have been hatches every day: Caddis, Mayflys and Alder flies as well as some random Stone fly activity.





I fished a large riffle the other night. The fishing was steady with several 12” to 15” fish caught on a large Caddis (size six) fished wet. I saw some big fish 18” to 20” working an eddie off the riffle edge that must have been taking Nymphs.I could not get them to take anything I had in my box. But the fact that they were there is what makes me fish!




The greatest part of fishing is working out what the fish will take, whether it’s fishing for Bass and Browns below Rumford or Rainbows up near Bethel. The detail of reading the water to find where and how the fish are feeding, and what they are feeding on, is the most important skill to fish any body of water.




The Androscoggin is made up of quick water pools, runs, and riffles. It averages 150-300 feet or more in width. The average river depth is 4-6 feet with some pools as deep as 12 feet or more. There is 20 plus miles of water of this caliber from the N.H. border down to the Rumford dam.. This volume of water affords the angler a tremendous opportunity. To stand in a fast-water riffle at twilight and look across a hundred yards to the opposite shore and imagine how many fish are holding is breathtaking.





I’ve spent most of my life mastering this water, and every day I spend on it, I learn more. It is my opinion that learning to fish Nymphs, and wet flies, including streamers, are the key to consistently taking large-bodied Trout. Fishing with dry flies is the epitome of fly-fishing. But to consistently take bigger and more fish one should learn to fish subsurface. 85-95% of the fish’s diet comes from the bottom, or just above bottom..




“A man should believe in something…I believe I’ll go fishing!”