Turner Deadwater in Piscataquis County: How and When to Fish It

• Overview

  Turner Deadwater sits in Piscataquis County, out in Maine. The bank is 1,322 feet above sea level. At 2 acres it is the sort of place you fish for an evening rather than a day. Our Piscataquis County list holds plenty of bigger water. The town to know is Patten, 22 miles out. Millinocket is 25 miles and East Millinocket 30 miles. No border sits close enough to matter.

• Where to Fish on Turner Deadwater

  Without a survey to go on, judge depth from how the bank falls away. On a natural lake the weed line and the shelf beyond it do the work. A natural lake fishes on cover, and cover here means weed and timber. Piscataquis County records list Atlantic salmon, rainbow smelt and brook trout among the fish reported. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. At Turner Deadwater the first feature you find is worth twenty minutes.

• Seasonal Patterns

  The seasonal spread runs 9°F to 63°F. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. The freeze runs deep into the year, with break-up near late April. Going by climate averages, expect open water from about late April until roughly late November. Fish feed hardest at the start and the close of the open season. At Turner Deadwater the season follows that pattern closely.

• Tackle & Baits

  The access position is unclear from public sources. Overnight stays are possible about half a mile out, where camping is mapped. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Where a permit is needed, the nearest town usually sells it. Keep proof of licence with you rather than in the car. The nearest alternative is Russell Pond, 0.3 miles out. Treat Turner Deadwater as unsettled until someone local tells you otherwise.