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Author Topic: Chicopee and Montague  (Read 1103 times)

bogtrotter

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Chicopee and Montague
« on: Jun 06, 2020, 07:31 PM »
My younger son and I went on a road trip to points east today.

We started by driving to Chicopee. 

First stop, Frank's Bait on Granby Road to pick up some night crawlers and shad darts.  My Dad and I started going there in the 1970s.  Frank's still there, crotchety as ever. 

Then we drove a short way down Granby Road to fish the Chicopee River about 1/4 mile or so above the Davitt Bridge, hoping to catch some shad and maybe a few bass.

I had expected the stream to be low, but was amazed just how much.  The low water levels made it so easy to wade that my chest waders and my son's hip boots, while certainly handy, were almost unnecessary.

Much to my surprise, after about five minutes, I landed a 17" or 18" rainbow. 

I'd heard of folks catching trout on the Chicopee a few miles upstream, but cannot recall ever catching (or seeing anyone else catching) one practically on the mouth of the Connecticut.

We fished for a couple hours between where we put in and a dam about 1/4 mile upstream, and then we drove to another spot about 1/4 mile below the Davitt Bridge and fished downstream for another hour.

Between the two stretches of the river, my son and I together reeled in a half dozen small mouth bass (with my son's 14" one being the biggest), an equal number of decent sized sunfish, and a rock bass - - all on night crawler segments.

(We also took a few half-hearted casts with the shad darts - - but the river was so low and no one else seemed to be fishing for shad, so we didn't have much optimism, and didn't connect with anything). 

We also saw an osprey - - once above the bridge and once below it.

There were a few other folks fishing the river above the bridge, but none below it. 

We talked to three college age kids in shorts and sneakers who said they caught a comparable number of small mouth, and also reported seeing an eel.

I also talked to a Hispanic gentlemen who was successfully targeting rock bass a little closer to the bridge itself.

Around 2 PM or so, it started thundering and raining pretty hard, so we took a break and headed to Arnold's Meats, where I stocked up on everything from kiszka, chourizo and linguica, to oxtails, duck breast, rabbit, alligator, crayfish, catfish, lobster cakes and crab rangoons.

Next, after packing our cooler with the newly purchased provisions, we drove to Montague so that I could fish two stretches along the Saw Mill (which was considerably lower than the last time I fished it a month ago)l .

(By this time, my son, who had slept poorly last night,had conked out in the car and took a hard pass on any additional fishing for the day).

I started by the Book Mill.  Alas, no fish responded to my casts. 

But, as I slowly climbed up the short series of waterfalls by the Mill, I was surprised to see about a dozen eels making the same journey alongside me. 

The eels would wriggle part way up a water fall, then lose steam and either "stick" to the side (if the slope of the waterfall was gentle enough) or slide backwards (if it was too steep).

It was quite a sight, and I don't remember ever seeing (or even hearing of) eels in the Saw Mill before.

After returning to my car, I then drove to South Street, and waded from the bridge there to the Union Street bridge.

Over the course of that stretch, I caught a total of nine brookies (the smallest just 4" long, but the rest all 7" to 9") and one 10" brown.

Then I got out of the stream and walked back to my car (picking up a Jo Nesbo detective novel at a "side walk library" along the way), rejoined my son (who had awoken by this time) and made the long (at least for me) drive home.
 

 

stripernut

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Re: Chicopee and Montague
« Reply #1 on: Jun 06, 2020, 10:31 PM »
Great report! You are sure they were eels and not Lampreys? It could be either this time of year...

bogtrotter

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Re: Chicopee and Montague
« Reply #2 on: Jun 07, 2020, 06:08 AM »
You are correct - - they were lamprey.

After I submitted my post, my son showed me some online photos of both American eels and lamprey, and when I concluded (based on the sucker-type mouth) that what I saw had been lamprey, the young whippersnapper pedantically informed me that "lamprey are not really eels."

But I don't care what those scientificky type folks say - -  if it looks like a snake and lives in the water, it's an eel.

stripernut

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Re: Chicopee and Montague
« Reply #3 on: Jun 07, 2020, 07:26 AM »
Quote
But I don't care what those scientificky type folks say

I'm a big fan of that "scientifically" type stuff and glad your son is too!

maxma

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Re: Chicopee and Montague
« Reply #4 on: Jun 07, 2020, 08:20 PM »

The report always brings the smile to my face. I like the part that you saw the eels. Thanks!

scooper47

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Re: Chicopee and Montague
« Reply #5 on: Jun 08, 2020, 07:11 AM »
I always appreciate your detailed reports and especially your short paragraphs.

 



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