Fishing at Block Brook, Hampden County, Massachusetts

• Overview

  Block Brook lies in Hampden County, in Massachusetts. The bank is 98 feet above sea level. West Springfield at 1.7 miles is the nearest place to stop. Springfield is the closest city, 3.1 miles away. More in the same country: 2.4 miles out stands Silver Lake, Bearhole Reservoir within 2.7 miles, 3.5 miles out stands Van Horn Park Upper Pond, Bemis Pond within 4.5 miles and 4.8 miles out stands Porter Lake. A county boundary sits nearby, which can matter for local access rules.

• Where to Fish on Block Brook

  No chart reached our records; the first cast is your sounding. Where two currents meet, work the crease between them. Gravel runs and silted pools fish quite differently, so treat them apart. Records held for Hampden County cover bluegill, white sucker, pumpkinseed and brook trout. These are county-wide records, so not all of them will be in this water. At Block Brook the water rewards a slow, careful approach.

• Seasonal Patterns

  July runs about 73°F on average, January about 25°F. The year runs cold to warm and back, with clear transitions. Winter slows the flow and edges it with ice; the open runs keep fishing where the current holds. Climate averages put the opening at about late March and the closing near late December. The strong weeks are the first after break-up and the last before the freeze. That shapes the year on Block Brook.

• Tackle & Baits

  Whether you may fish here is not something records settle. There is somewhere to leave the car, half a mile off. A small crankbait along the drop and a worm in the thick stuff cover the bass. Check locally before you travel, because a wasted drive is a long one. Where tickets apply, they are sold in the nearest town rather than on the bank. The nearest alternative is Silver Lake, 2.4 miles out. Treat access at Block Brook as something to verify.