Aroostook County Ice Fishing Preview Report

Ice fishing season is officially here in Northern Maine! Who's excited?

It may be early in the ice fishing season, but anglers are taking advantage of fishing opportunities at Scopan Lake and Mud Pond in Linneus. According to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, both were stocked heavily with brook trout earlier this season, and anglers are out enjoying the early season ice conditions.

Other ponds for those looking to get out early include Arnold Brook Lake in Presque Isle, and Hodgdon Pond in Hodgdon. Arnold Brook has excellent brook trout fishing and a two trap limit, and Hodgdon Pond is stocked with brown trout.

IFW fisheries biologist Frank Frost said “We have seen a lot of people out on our early waters and they are catching fish.”

Many in the area, however, look forward to January 1 and the traditional opening of ice fishing season.

Frost said, “Our ice conditions are pretty good, we have five to nine inches of ice on a lot of our lakes.”

There is already up to a half a foot of ice on portions of Long Pond and Square Pond. That’s good news for anglers, since the past several years, both of those ponds have had somewhat sketchy ice conditions on opening day.

In southern Aroostook, Nickerson Lake in New Limerick has both browns and brookies, and Drews Lake in Linneus offers both browns and splake. Anglers may also want to test Spaulding Lake in Oakfield for brook trout.