Upper Pug Lake, Maine: Fishing Spots and Seasons

• Overview

  This water sits in Penobscot County, Maine. The setting is pine and birch on every side. With some 66 acres of water, there is room for a boat but no need of one. Bank access stretches around 1.6 miles in total. Head to Lincoln, 19 miles away, for anything you forgot. Further out sit Enfield (23 miles) and Howland (27 miles). No boundary runs near, so the county rules hold throughout.

• Where to Fish on Upper Pug Lake

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. Weed, then depth: that is the order to fish a water of this kind. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Species logged across Penobscot County include Atlantic salmon, brown trout, smallmouth bass and chain pickerel. Protected fish appear in the records for this area, so treat the list as information, not an invitation. At Upper Pug Lake light and wind decide more than tackle does.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Typical July readings run about 67°F; by January the average is down near 15°F. Four clear seasons, with a proper winter at one end. Firm cover through the cold months, then open water from mid April. Break-up sits around mid April on average, with the water closing again about early December. June through September is the settled part of the year, with the shoulders busier for fish. Plan around that when you fish Upper Pug Lake.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. No dam controls it, and the level follows the season. Access is unmapped, which usually means a farm track and a walk. Bass water: a Texas-rigged worm near cover, a spinnerbait when you need to cover ground. Some banks are open only from a marked point. Signs go up and come down, so check on the day. Failing this one, try Lower Pug Lake, 0.7 miles away. For Upper Pug Lake in particular, ask before you travel.