Thursday, February 22, 2018

Cold Winters and Hot Togue Fishing on Sebago Lake


Thanks to a frigid start to the ice fishing season, many of Maine’s lakes have had the chance to accumulate a solid base of ice. While ice can never be considered completely safe without careful consideration, especially given changing ice conditions due to recent warm weather, many anglers have found that this season has provided plenty of opportunity to find thick ice and get in some quality fishing time. That includes MDIFW staff who also enjoy fishing on their days off!

Even the largest lake in southern Maine, Sebago Lake, has proven to be a hot spot for many local anglers. In more sheltered areas like Jordan Bay and the Lower Bay on Sebago, ice shacks dot the horizon, as if anglers decided to start a town solely on the principle of fish, and plenty of them. It’s no wonder, either, given reports of action on lake trout (referred to as togue in Maine) often running steadily through a whole day on the ice. Some parties of only three or four anglers have reported catching well above 50 togue in one day. As togue tend to stay in the deep waters of the lake, many successful anglers have found that jigging flashy spoons or lures just off the bottom has been an especially effective strategy, and has provided an exciting and long fight as fish are hauled all the way back to the surface.

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