Hopkins Pond in Hancock County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Hopkins Pond is a Hancock County water, in Maine. Tidal water begins 19 miles from here. At some 430 acres it is far too large to cover on foot in a day. At about 6.1 miles of edge, most people work one arm at a time. Size puts it in the front rank of our Hancock County list. The town to know is Holden, 11 miles out. Further out sit Eddington (12 miles) and Dedham (12 miles). Local rules may differ a few miles either side of here.

• Where to Fish on Hopkins Pond

  No figure exists for depth, so let the water show you. Where the bottom changes texture, fish gather; find that line. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Fish documented in Hancock County include Atlantic salmon, brown trout and alewife. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. The shape of Hopkins Pond rewards a slow walk along one bank.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The year swings from about 17°F in January to roughly 67°F in July. The season turns properly here, and fish follow it closely. The lid usually sets by midwinter and gives way around mid April. Open water usually runs from mid April until about early December. September and October fish steadily right up to the freeze. Anyone fishing Hopkins Pond regularly works to that calendar.

• Tackle & Baits

  Who may fish here is not settled in anything we hold. This is a natural basin, not a dammed one. There is no recorded infrastructure here; expect to find your own way in. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. State or provincial rules still apply whatever the bank status. Where the way in crosses private ground, ask first. Oran Pond sits 0.9 miles off and takes the overflow. Where Hopkins Pond is concerned, a local answer beats a written one.