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"Fish and Game marine biologist Robert Eckert recommends a family fishing excursion in salt water right now, as the fish are biting and the weather is great both off shore and along the surf zone.\"Party boat companies along the coast are now doing half-day, full-day, and two-hour night fishing trips. The half-day and night trips are usually fishing for mackerel, while the full-day trips venture out for groundfish,\" he said.A list of licensed boat captains with phone numbers is at http://www.wildlife.state.nh.us/marine/charter.html.The Atlantic Queen out of Rye Harbor offers $65 full day or $35 half day trips and $7 rod rentals on its big boat. You can make a reservation at 964-5220 or visit them at www.atlanticqueenfishing.com.\"When fishing for groundfish, there are many ways you can set up your rig. Use a 20 ounce sinker with a hook and a piece of clam or use a colorful fly with a piece of clam or by itself. You could also use a jig by itself or a fly tied about a foot above a jig; this appears like a herring chasing bait,\" Eckert recommends.\"Shore anglers are still catching striped bass and winter flounder,\" he said (see related story).\"There are also reports of black sea bass being caught near the General Sullivan Bridge from Hilton Park and Bloody Point in Newington. Striped bass have been biting on artificial lures pulled through the water quickly; large amounts of juvenile Atlantic herring are in the harbors. Small stripers have also been caught on clams from the jetties in Hampton and Seabrook. Keep an eye out for bluefish; they should be arriving soon.\"For inland fishing, the rain and warm water are making it harder to find fish.Rain has left favorite spots on the Connecticut River almost unfishable in the North Country, said Andy Schafermeyer, regional fisheries biologist.\"Even though I am anxious to wade into these spots, I have been having fun searching out smaller water and changing my tactics. Last week, I fished Lyman Brook in Columbia, which is managed for wild trout, and had a great time.\"The special rules call for catch-and-release and limit tackle to single barbless hooks on artificial lures and flies.\"I started by flipping small royal coachmen dry flies into pools and glides. Although this is a great approach for small streams, it wasn\u2019t working on Lyman Brook. I switched to a prince nymph and started catching wild rainbow trout with some consistency. Most fish were holding in riffle habitat and seemed to enjoy the peacock flash in my fly. Within a few hours, I had landed five or six fish, and was genuinely satisfied.\"Schafermeyer decided to see what the high water levels had done to Lake Umbagog.\"One of my favorite smallmouth spots, Umbagog was high, but the water was still warm. I began the day by casting drop shot rigs with a small (3 inch) pumpkinseed-colored worm. This worked well, and I caught some small fish.\"I wanted to find some larger fish and moved my boat to the river channel that can be found where the Magalloway River enters and the Androscoggin drains. Aquatic vegetation has grown up to levels just below the surface, and I tried casting a torpedo topwater lure over them. This didn\u2019t work as well as I\u2019d hoped, and fish were reluctant to come to the surface in the middle of a hot sunny day.\"I stayed in the same location and tried ripping spinner baits through the grass. I caught one nice fish and missed a few others. By the end of the day, I was dehydrated and sunburned, but had caught enough bass to keep me happy.\"Don Miller, Lakes Region regional fisheries biologist, recommends trout ponds and fishing until dark.\"Brook and rainbows go crazy when this hatch occurs. Any large dry fly, tied with a good amount of hackle, especially in cream or white color will do the job. Mayflies are a good indicator of the health of a pond or lake, as they require soft bottoms with a good supply of oxygen.\"He and fellow biologist John Viar have been stocking surplus brook trout into area ponds throughout the White Mountains and Lakes Region.\"Boat stocking is the only method to use on these fish, as water temps are above normal right now. Enjoy these fish, raised by our great team of fish culturist\u2019s right here at New Hampton Hatchery\" Miller said.Salmon anglers will find their favorite fish in 30-40 feet of water but Miller asks anglers to be mindful.\"I may sound like a broken record, but these salmon are growing at a rapid rate now, feeding on the abundant smelt found in most of our salmon lakes. Catch and release is problematic when we have surface temps in the range we see now, so be mindful of this fishery and the effects we may have on it.\"Bring sunscreen, a bottle of water and have fun."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.wmur.com/article/fish-are-biting-in-salt-water-off-seacoast/5183319>