My wife, two friends, and I spent a few days on Chesuncook Lake and parts of the Upper West Branch of the Penobscot last June.  Since the weather was VERY hot (nineties almost every day), the fishing (or should I say "catching" was awful.  As a result, I'm posting this brief report in the General forum rather than in the fishing section.

Let me start out by saying that taking the right equipment is mandatory, more so when one is traveling a 20 mile lake, far from any sort of immediate help.  A good boat, dry bags, life jackets, Goretex raingear, and a bailer are absolutely needed, as you'll see later on.  Secondly, we had previously told several people about our trip, where we were going, etc, and we also filled out a North Maine Woods itinerary at the put in spot.

The first day out was calm and hot.  We tried trolling a streamer behind the two boats, progressing up the west side of the lake until around 2pm, when we came upon one of the most beautiful camp sites I've even seen.

  Long, gravel beach with a large, open grassy camping area.  We decided to stay there the first night. Shortly after setting up camp, two Wardens came by and chatted with us, along with asking to see our licenses.  They said the fishing was very slow due to the heat, and we had to agree with them.  They also said that we were just about the only people on the lake that day. 

A great dinner of home fries and steak cooked on the reflector oven, proved yet once again that the "C" in camping is for comfort.  Later that evening the sunset reflecting off Mount Katahdin to the east provided an exquisite panorama out of a travel magazine and a way to end the day.

The next morning we headed past the Chesuncook Lake House and into the Upper West Branch of the Penobscot River.  Although the water level was probably at a medium height, I recommend motoring at idle speed.  There are many old rock piles and exposed rock at or just below the surface which could cause a lot of damage to propellors and the boat.  We saw more than we expected.

About four or five miles upstream we came to an area of rock ledges on the left side of the river, where I had been told the fishing can be good.  We used a variety of dry flies (Dark Hendrickson, Mr. Rapidan) and managed to land several yellow perch, but no trout or salmon, again due to the high temeratures.  That night we camped about two miles from the mouth of the river, and planned to stay the next evening at the Chesuncook Lake House.  Morning brought rain, but the tarp kept us dry in the kitchen while we enjoyed black coffee, juice, bacon, and fresh blueberry pancakes before heading downriver.

If you go to Chesuncook, plan on at least one night's stay at the Chesuncook Lake House. The people who run it are wonderful, the food is great, and nothing beats a hot shower after a few nights in the north Maine woods for sure! 

Prior to heading back to our put in spot, we checked the weather report with the manager of the Lake House.  The forecast was for "misty rain and mild wind" that day, so we headed south, with a course past the south end of Gero Island.  Just about half way across the skies opened up with unbelieveable rain and very high winds.

  It was impossible to turn around, so we slowed the motors to just above idle in order to ride the waves diagonally rather than to go into them directly.  This was a very wise decision.  We spent the next forty five minutes or so working our way to the east shore of the lake, constantly bailing and keeping each of the two boats in each other's site.  Once safely in a cove on the other site, the four of us breathed a massive sigh of relief and finished bailing the boats. 

As I said in the beginning, the fishing was great, but the "catching" was awful.  As always, plan to bring the right equipment, tell somebody where you're going and when you should return, and check in the local authorities before you start your trip.

Chesuncook Lake is one of the most beautiful trips I've even taken, and I definitely plan a return on my "bucket list". 

Tight lines!

Bill Stevens

Registered Maine Guide

Bill

Thats a great report for the site.  I took the liberty to edit the post and make the pictures show in the post.  You need to edit the report to see what I did.  Use the FILE tag to display the photo's, and when you click on them they open in a lightbox full size.

Thanks for the great story.

Lee