YOUR FISHING GUIDE FOR ALL SEASONS IN THE BERKSHIRES! MASSACHUSETTS' PREMIER SOURCE FOR GUIDED ICE FISHING!

 LIVE BAIT IS HERE!

Planning a fishing trip to Berkshire County? Check out http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Great+Barrington&state=MA&site=ALY&textField1=42.1944&textField2=-73.3564&e=0 for the latest weather from the National Weather Service before you go!.

First time fishing on a given lake or pond? check out http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/habitat/maps/ponds/pond_maps.htm for up to date topographical maps of virtually every pond or lake in massachusetts!

Don't leave any trash, and pick up any you might find. Many people have fires on he ice, If you choose to have a fire, either bring your own wood, or take ONLY from public land. Do not take wood from anyones yard or home. Do not burn trash in a fire, only paper or wood products, the ashes from burning trash is very toxic to the water and the air.

Do these things and we will all be able to enjoy our lakes, streams, and rivers for generations.

Please remember, The money from the purchase of fishing licenses is what goes to the wonderful trout stocking programs, Building and maintaining of Boat launches and docks, and the overall maintainance of our Massachusetts lakes, rivers and waterways. It may seem like It costs a lot of money to buy a license, but It would cost far more to try to replace our precious habitats after they are gone. PLEASE BUY YOUR LICENSE, and if you have any extra dollars this year don't forget mass DFW! To buy and print your license for residents and non residents please visit http://www.massfishhunt.com 

STOP INTO THE STORE AND ASK ABOUT ANY LOCAL LAKE OR RIVER FOR THE MOST UP TO DATE INFORMATION.

PRIVATE LESSONS ARE AVAILABLE WITH ADVANCE NOTICE.

Current fishing conditions and tactics 

UPDATED 01/18/2012 6:08 am

The late fall Berkshire trout stocking was good. Most lakes will have a great population of fish for winter. The Rainbow trout and Brown bite has been incredible so far! smaller sized fish seem to be being taken in most place compared to last years monsters. Smaller bait and shallow depth are the keys! Don't be afraid to fish in 2-3 feet of water for some monster fish.

The Panfish bite is heating up as the ice is solidifying on larger bodies of water and you can get out past the first weed beds. Try a Grizz-Bait non-lead Tetr Totr tipped with a waxxy for some slab action! 

Smelt season is CLOSED. Some nice ones were being caught off of Onota Lake and Colebrook Reservoir. Littlefield, Greenwater and Goose pond also have populations of smelt. Remember, fish deep during the day, and try to bring the schools up at night. Sabiki rigs tipped with spikes or waxworms work great for larger schools while size 10 Hali syorsky's work great for singles! Just remember to add enough weight to sink your bait to the school quickly, but not enough to miss the feel from these light-biters!

The bass bite is strong! Big females with egg formation are starting to feed heavily in order to develop their eggs inside. Find the fish on weed edges and shallow drops that offer them the ability to travel to the food and back to cover. REMEMBER with bass, selective harvest is best, put those big 3pound + fish back and keep the smaller 1-2 pounders. Bigger bass can protect their nests from raiders during the spawn, and it keeps the gene pool strong! Larger lakes have been fishing a bit slower for bass than the smaller ponds, maybe due to pressure issues.

Want to try Salmon fishing??? well, wait until next yera. Those of you who are furtuinate enough to land one, hats off! The stocking was less than 10% of last year and only a few lakes recieved any.

Pike fishing is really getting good! Big fish and lots of them are being taken off the right bodies of water. Remember big fish are smart fish and may need a little coaxing on the hook. Try ising saltwater Striper rigs pre tied with 50# or 80# flourocarbon when fishing in "community holes".

If you live in the Boston area, Check out "Chronicle HD" on Tuesday 01/24 to see the replay of the piece on Charter The Berkshires!

http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/30291817/detail.html

The Best Ice Fishing Ponds and Lakes in the Berkshires!

BERKSHIRE ICE CONDITIONS

01/27/12

Heavy rains and warm temperatures have eroded a good amount of ice along the edges of many lakes. Solid ice still exists in the centers of lakes and ponds and also on non draining edges. Be careful for unfrozen holes from other anglers and breather holes that are draining the new rain on the surface. Careful anglers who know the water can be safe. Do not take vehicles of any size out today! 

Some lakes with extreme pressure ridges had some surface water drainage creating minor areas where you still need to be cautious. Avoid breather hioles or pressure ridges and you are good to go!

ALL CHARTERED TRIPS ARE ON!

Broodstock Salmon Stocking Report As many of you know the salmon hatchery in Bethel, VT was all but wiped out in Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. NO SALMON WERE STOCKED FROM THIS FACILITY. Salmon ARE being stocked from the Palmer, MA facility. However ONLY 60 SALMON will be stocked in the Western MA district from this facility.http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/fisheries/anadromous/broodstock_salmon_stocking.htm  

One of my biggest requests is to get information on a given pond or lake. But telling someone about a lake is different than having knowledge of a lake. I have posted a link to the "Pond Maps" feature located at http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/dfw_toc.htm. They are hand drawn maps illustrating the bottom features of virtually every pond or lake in massachusetts. After you look at the topography of the lake it is also helpful to use "Google Earth" to see a satellite image of the lake. That can help you see weed beds, stumps, or boulders that might be visible in the summer, but invisible under the ice!

Knowing what you are fishing around and over is even more important than knowing what you are fishing for!

First decide what you want to fish for. If you want to fish for Salmon or Trout you will need to fish with entirely different equipment than if you fish for Bass and Pickeral, If you want to fish for Bass and Pickerel, you will need different tackle  than if you fish for Pike or Musky. Same applies for Carp, Bullheads, Perch, White perch, or Bluegill.

Keeping this in mind Start out on your day. At Taft's Tackle I stock the right equipment to handle any and all of these fishing situations, and the right bait to land the big ones!

Instead of making any specific recommendation on a pond or lake I have compiled my top 5. Your top 5 may be different than mine, and you may catch something completely different than what I do when I go to these lakes, but it is a good starting point to begin your trip. I have these listed in no particular order

TOP 5 BASS ice fishing lakes Pontoosuc Lake, Lake Garfield, Laurel Lake, Lake Ashmere, Three Mile Pond.

*TOP 5 TROUT ice fishing lakes Stockbridge Bowl, Onota Lake, Windsor Pond, Laurel Lake, Goose Pond

*TOP 5 Salmon ice fishing lakes Stockbridge Bowl, Laurel Lake, Goose Pond, Onota Lake, Windsor Pond

TOP 5 Pike / Musky ice fishing lakes Pontoosuc Lake, Onota Lake, Woods Pond, Cheshire, Housatonic River**

***TOP 5 Panfish ice fishing lakes Prospect Lake, Pontoosuc Lake, Richmond Pond, Lake Buel, Hayes Pond.

* denotes State stocked waters. Mass Wildlife releases hundreds of trout and salmon into many local lakes and rivers.

**Many sections of the Housatonic River freeze safe enough to ice fish on. DO NOT ATTEMPT to fish on the river unless you are familiar with where you are fishing. There can be currents underfoot which can make sections unsafe, even if the majority of a cove is frozen!!! excersize caution at all times.

*** for the purposes of this list I have lumped Perch, Bluegill, Crappie, and other species into "panfish".