Cradled between the rolling hills of Beddington, some 50 miles east of Bangor, rests Pleasant River Lake. It’s a body of water that’s considered a marginal cold water lake. One factor contributing to this classification is its lack of deep holes. About 70 percent of the lake has depths less than 20 feet.

Back in the 50s to the early 70s it produced mainly salmon, but nothing that would be considered trophy, said Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife fisheries biologist Ron Brokaw.He said the bulk of the heavyweights were between 16 and 19 inches, with an occasional 20-inch fish boated.

Today, salmon are not so common. They are sharing space with white perch, and fisheries biologist Rick Jordan feels they could have impacted salmon fishing. Perch have become much more abundant in the lake over the years, said Jordan.

Perch occupy much of the deep pockets along with salmon during the hot summers, and compete for some of the same foods, said Jordan. Landlocked salmon depend on these depths during the heat of the summer, and the lake already has a shortage of them, said Jordan, explaining that a salmon’s metabolism slows considerably without cool temperatures, only found in these deep pockets.

Today the lake also harbors bass, which were illegally introduced in the 70s, according to Jordan. However the fisheries biologist doesn’t believe this act had much impact on the salmon fishing, even though the lake is a border-line cold water fishery. It’s proving salmon and bass can swim alongside each other, and pack on a pretty sizable waist-line in the process. There are a number of waters across the state to verify it.

For a number of years now fisheries biologists have tried to bring salmon back to the forefront, but the lake has shown it’s not especially hospitable to them, said Brokaw. Camp owners desire a competitive cold-water fish, but it’s not easy to achieve in this water, he added. Brook trout are out of the question because of the presence of perch and bass, said Brokaw. He added that it’s been proven trout can’t compete with either fish.

In 1992 fisheries biologists introduced splake into Pleasant River Lake, hoping this would be the cold-water species that would feel right at home. One reason being, a splake feeds on white perch, a fish this lake has in abundance, said Brokaw.

Since 1992, fisheries biologists have only failed to stock splake during one year. However, biologists are still not completely satisfied with the results, said Brokaw. Splake are being caught in both the summer and winter fishing seasons, said Brokaw. However biologists would like to hear of more frequent catches.

While trap-netting the lake earlier this week, biologists were disappointed in the number of splake they saw. They only netted about 50 percent of the splake they had hoped to.

The good news is biologists haven’t given up, and the splake-stocking program hasn’t been abolished. Who knows, next year at this time, splake might show up in force.

Kennebec fishing slow

Slow fishing is the word on the East Outlet of the Kennebec River, according to Dan Legere, owner of the Maine Guide Fly Shop in Greenville. However during the first few hours of daylight, and the waning hours of the day there’s been some success, said Legere.

His advice is to arm yourself with a No. 18 Black Caddis, and tie on a No. 12 as a dropper by attaching it a few feet from the smaller fly. The larger Caddis is much more visible, and helps you better detect when fish strike the smaller fly, said Legere. He added that as a rule the fish usually prefer the No. 18 Caddis. During the heat of the day load up with large stoneflies, but patience is the word, said Legere.

Sebago togue active

At the Southern end of Sebago Lake, togue are still on the take according to a recent report from fisheries biologist John Boland. There have been as many as 10 boated in a day, but nothing carrying excessive weight, said Boland. They are averaging between 3 to 5 pounds. Salmon fishing remains slow, with the majority of the action in depths from 30-50 feet, said Boland. He added that the bulk of the catches were between 15 and 18 inches.

Question of the week

What fish are usually the most plentiful and dominant species in the waters in which they exist?

Answer to last week’s question: Does Maine have more brook trout waters than any other state? Yes.

Outdoor Calendar

On Sept. 22, starting at 9 a.m., the Maine Chapter of Pheasants Forever will sponsor a Rednecks Youth Activity day. They are a nonprofit organization aimed at restoring and preserving pheasants across North America. The event will include activities like skeet shooting, hunting dog demonstrations, firearm safety, etc. It will be held at the Fox Pond Estate in Franklin. For more information contact Mark Root 207 667-5183.

Terry Farren’s outdoor report is published each Friday. He can be reached at 990-8067 or by e-mail at outdoor report@bangor dailynews.net