Maine’s Androscoggin River Report
Water temp 63.46 F Flow Rate 1152 cfs @ Mead Westvaco in Rumford

I guided yesterday with two clients Jamie Gold and Jim Bullard. We were after smallies below Rumford working From My 17 ft. custom Built Drift boat. We were on the water at seven. I rowed up river to a riffle just above the jct. of the Swift River and the Androscoggin. The morning fog started to rise as I positioned the boat along a seam between the fast current and a large eddy below the riffle. I dropped anchor and Jim had a strike on the first cast! He had a hook up on the next cast with Jamie taking a fish almost as fast. This was the start of a seventy fish day that we all will remember fondly.
Jamie and Jim Were using tube baits ,grubs ,and clousers. We steadily moved down river working all the Rock structure there was. They picked up fish all morning long. Changing equipment if the fishing slowed.
By mid day the fishing was the slowest, but fish were still being taken. We broke for lunch and talked about how the fishing compared to the Rivers that Jim and Jamie fish near home in the
Washington D.C. area. Both agreed that the Androscoggin River Smallies were heavier for their length and fought HARDER!
I have never fished for Smallmouth any where else so this fishery is what I must go by. I am a fly fisherman and fish Smallies as much as possible The best days I personally have had have been Fifty strikes and thirty-five to forty fish boated using weighted streamer patterns. I could catch more but my arm gets too sore to hold the Rod! That is a good problem to have.

After lunch we continued down river . The fishing picked up again as the afternoon progressed.
We had to move through some areas that had no structure but caught some fish regardless. The biggest fish were taken in the early evening. Both Jamie and Jim took three pound fish . Jim’s being the largest of the day . It must of been at least three and a half pounds maybe more! The bass averaged. 1.5 to 2 lb with at least six topping Three plus lbs.
“ A man should believe in something... I believe I’ll go Fishing”