Cedar Lake Fishing near Salem, Connecticut

• Overview

  In Connecticut, Cedar Lake falls inside Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region. Salt water lies 5.3 miles off. At about 25 acres, a day is enough to walk the shoreline properly. Supplies mean a trip to Salem, 5.2 miles off. Hartford sits 31 miles out, and it is the nearest city worth the name. Rules can differ a short way off, since the county line is near.

• Where to Fish on Cedar Lake

  No published figure covers depth, so learn it as you fish. Read the surface for the wind lane, then fish the edge of it. Bays and points beat straight shoreline every time on water like this. Reported across Lower Connecticut River Valley Planning Region: bluegill, bowfin, white perch, alewife and American eel. Several of these carry legal protection or closed seasons; the rulebook comes before the rod. At Cedar Lake the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Averages move between 27°F in January and 71°F in July. Whether it freezes depends on the year. Hard water here is never dependable, so check for yourself before stepping out. The hot months push the fishing to dawn and dusk. Cedar Lake runs to that rhythm year in and year out. Late summer often means an early start or nothing at all.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. You can park half a mile away and walk in from there. A jetty or pier is mapped about 0.9 miles from here. There is a toilet block some half a mile out. Young Preserve runs up to the bank here, which usually means extra restrictions. Sort the permit out before you load the car. Barbless rules turn up on managed water more often than not. For a change of water, E A Whitford Pond is 0.4 miles distant. None of that is settled for Cedar Lake in what we hold.