Anyone care to share some Esplanade shore fishing tips?
I've been fishing the Esplanade (with and without kids) a decent amount over the last year and have had incredible days of good-sized largemouths and decent smallies from the various docks and have also had a lot of skunky days with only panfish and little dinks.
I like the docks, see lots of folks carp & catfishing the Muddy River- Charles River confluence, and have seen folks fishing the canal. Problem is whenever I venture off the docks, I bat .000 -- if I'm not fishing the docks, I'm not getting bit!
There have got to be other decent spots... Wish I could borrow a boat & fish finder for a day to get a better sense of the structure... Feels like a lot of blind casts otherwise!
Where are you all getting bites at the Charles? Any seasonal patterns you've noticed?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts!
-G
I've been fishing the Esplanade (with and without kids) a decent amount over the last year and have had incredible days of good-sized largemouths and decent smallies from the various docks and have also had a lot of skunky days with only panfish and little dinks.
I like the docks, see lots of folks carp & catfishing the Muddy River- Charles River confluence, and have seen folks fishing the canal. Problem is whenever I venture off the docks, I bat .000 -- if I'm not fishing the docks, I'm not getting bit!
There have got to be other decent spots... Wish I could borrow a boat & fish finder for a day to get a better sense of the structure... Feels like a lot of blind casts otherwise!
Where are you all getting bites at the Charles? Any seasonal patterns you've noticed?
Thanks in advance for your thoughts!
-G
I fish there a couple times a week. As of Sunday the fish are post spawned but the males are still guarding there fry. There should be fish on the beds just right to the esplanade stage. On weekends there are always a lot of people on the dock, but you can make cast from shore.
The rest of the esplanade is a series of pools, 4 actually. If start from the stage, I only fish in 2 of them, the first and the fourth. The first pool has some good fish on the deep bank. But I mostly fish the last pool. Its the biggest and is nothing more than a giant 4fow hard bottom spawning bed. I been having really bad luck there on low tide. The tides seem to have been really strong in May, and all the water gets sucked out on low tide.
As for borrowing a boat you could rent a kayak at the kendall kayak place, or even maybe the sail boat place at the esplanade. There is not much structure in the charles, it is pretty much a desert with a few humps and drop offs. The fish stack up in pretty obvious places: points, creek channels, bridge pillars, and power plant discharge.
The rest of the esplanade is a series of pools, 4 actually. If start from the stage, I only fish in 2 of them, the first and the fourth. The first pool has some good fish on the deep bank. But I mostly fish the last pool. Its the biggest and is nothing more than a giant 4fow hard bottom spawning bed. I been having really bad luck there on low tide. The tides seem to have been really strong in May, and all the water gets sucked out on low tide.
As for borrowing a boat you could rent a kayak at the kendall kayak place, or even maybe the sail boat place at the esplanade. There is not much structure in the charles, it is pretty much a desert with a few humps and drop offs. The fish stack up in pretty obvious places: points, creek channels, bridge pillars, and power plant discharge.
Any tips on parking in the area? I know there's metered parking on Charles st. Is that my best bet?
Any spots on the cambridge side of the river?
Parking is a little tight around here, but there are a few designated "visitor spots" in and around Beacon Hill & Back Bay areas. There are metered spots on Charles St., Beacon St., and Comm Ave. as well. Plus, the Charles/MGH Red Line stop drops you off right there.
I've heard from a few folks (aside from this forum) that the warm-water outfall from the Cambridge-side steam plant is a good spot & have seen large carp yanked out of there. If I were to rent a boat, I would also try the pilings near the Longfellow Bridge on the Cambridge side. Good cover.
Best,
G
The rest of the esplanade is a series of pools, 4 actually. If start from the stage, I only fish in 2 of them, the first and the fourth. The first pool has some good fish on the deep bank. But I mostly fish the last pool. ... The fish stack up in pretty obvious places: points, creek channels, bridge pillars, and power plant discharge.
Thanks so much, lucky, for the good info. If I understand your numbering, you're talking about the interior/lagoon/channel pools, numbered from around the Hatch Shell out to the Mass Ave bridge, right?
I've only tried pools #2 & 3, and I gave up after getting skunked, but I'll have to give #1 & 4 a try in addition to my usual dock fishing.
You're right, though -- the docks do get pretty crowded. One summer Saturday last year, I had a good-sized smallie on & right when I had it close to the dock, it jumped, and darn near landed on an oblivious bikini-clad sunbather. My son (and I) still laugh about it!
Tight Lines!
-G
The pools usually get choked out with weeds by the first week of July, only small ones stay after that. The BU bridge is the best bridge to fish. Boat traffic can be a b**** around it on the weekends, but the fish don't mind. Never had much luck around Longfellow bridge. But mostly I avoid them, that is the area where they let the kids drive the duckboats. I've been part of the tour too many times. The discharge is a better bet.