River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1895-08-15
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spls1did Sport to Be Fonnd In LAX, Z
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spls3did Sport to Be Found In LAX and
Streams of Maine.
In point Of gameness. qui.kness In
taking the bait or iy. and savage fight
ing when hooked, the Canadian species
has no advantage of the lie ndlocked
salmon of Maine. The reason so manp
anglers In the past have CON plained of
the lack OF gamy qualities IN the ssh il
that they have sought ard captured
them In still water. Every frequente-
OF the Roberval region knows that
onananchie taken in the quiet Lac =
Jeune or Lakes Pemoka. Plonger, or
Brochet, are as tame as any salted cod
fish when compared with the furious
ash that hide and feed in the foam-em-
broidered sddies of the Grand Dis
charge.
1t is the living and struggling for ex-
istence in mad swirliug current that
bring out the devilish agility and pow
erful energies of any race of fish. So,
If the Maine fishermen wish TO find the
landlocked salmon in perfection, let
them seek him in no calm. stagnans
ponds or pools. One of the very best
spots to Ssh, If one does not mind trav-
cling rough country 10 reach il. 10
Sebac lake. in PiscataQuis county, Me.
1t is a lovely sheet Of water, thirteen
miles long by about four and a half
wide, fed by two spring brooks. tho
Wilson and the Ship pond. 1t is sur
rounded by densely wooded ridges, and
its water is as cold as ice. The old
time custom has been TO fish in tho
deep quiet coves of the lake. but the
Nil e.. Id L. -, .,
inlet. AS soon as the ice is broken and
goes ont, the sport begins, and contin-
ues all through June. After that the
fish take TO the pools and deep spots in
the two brooks and are slrs gish and
disinclined to bite.
Three or four pounds is the average
weight of these beautiful fish, though
occasional prizes tip the beam at seven
ar eight When the salmon are first
rum" i. E., come up ont IF the deep
places in the spring, they are an ex-
tremely dark greenish color. Shortly.
after their play in the rapids has be-
gun. their sides and bellies fake on
silvery white tone, and the black shad-
ings show sharply. They have then
become fighters All the wirte
sloth has been shaken off. and the
landlccked salmon are ready 20 give
battle TO all Corners.
They hunt and feed on tae smelts.
which are very numerous and plump.
and so respond better to the efforts of
the bait caster than to those If the Az
fshermsr. At The very mouths OF tho
brooks, however. and above, IA tho
basins below the high falls. tho fish
run and jump for fly during this
month. The killing bait are the yoUng
smelts. r, failing them. small sinners
OF not more than three inches in
length. Use light bit strong tackle,
about such as you would carry fer
black bass A light salmon, single
strand, nine-foot leader, and q No 3
sprost hook, without swivel or sinker,
is good rig.
Though some of the old guides al
ways hook the minnow through both
lips, ii is easily demonstrated that the
bait lives longer if only hooked
through the upper lip. The once pop
ular hooking in the back under tho
dorsal fin has been entirely discarded
With your boat or canoe securely an
chored in the swiftest current. let cut
plenty of line, say from a hundred to
a hundred and fifty feet, and let the
eddies carry the bait as they will. 10
not, however, have too much slack. tor
when the salmon selves the bait you
must be able to strike. There arc
many rock points from which the
angler can take good fish without any
boat. but it is more difficult to bring
the fish to net.
The fly fisherman will find the dark
Montreal and the professor the taking
feathers here for June fishing He will
find, too, that the fish in the lake pre-
fer bait, and his best sport will be had
along the rivers. The Ship Pond
stream contains some very pretty riffs
and runs, and abounds in small but
gamy fish. Both fly and bait fishers
will admit after fair trial that this is
as game a fish taken under proper
conditions and at ? right season. as
they have ever booked.
1t is not SO hard to reac h this fine old
lake as il was few years ago. One
can take a train to Dover. and from
there take a drive of six miles to-
Blethen's. on Sebec lake, and then by
steamboat up the lake. There is an
other slightly longer route by way OF
Abbott Village by stage. The hotel
on the lake is small one and only
plain. coarse food may be had Ono
dollar a day is the rate charged. A
guide and boat will cost two dollars
a day. and they are hard to get in tho
fishing season. for the demand far ex-
ceeds the supply. If no other scheme
is feasible. one can join one of the sew
eral spor ting camps along the north
shore. There is no warm weather
ever known there, and the nights.
even through July and August, are ac-
tually cold. One needs a warm suit
for the early morning fishing, which is
the best of the day. for at sunrise and
shortly after, the biggest salmon are
feeding.