While not blessed with the tailwater "trout factories" found out west, Maine should be considered one of the top five to ten most important trout and salmon states in the country. With a significant amount of "natural" salmonid habitat, Maine holds the largest stocks of wild and native Atlantic salmon, eastern brook trout, and landlocked (Atlantic) salmon in the country. In addition, Maine is the only state where native blueback trout (actually a char) can be found. This alone should be more than enough to secure Maine's place as a salmonid resource of national importance.

With as much history as habitat, Maine was a popular fishing destination long before many of today's famous western "tailwaters" even existed. Add to this the pioneering fly tyers of the Rangeley Lakes region such as Carrie Stevens, and the important role that fishing guides played in the early Maine economy, and you have a fly fishing tradition as deep as that found anywhere else in the country. In fact, up until just a few years ago, the first Atlantic salmon caught in the Penobscot River each year was sent to the President of the United States!

Best known for its lighthouses, lobsters, loons, moose, brook trout, and Steven King, Maine is quietly gaining a reputation amongst regional anglers as "the" place to go in New England for non-native trout such as browns and rainbows. Led by rivers such as the Kennebec and Androscoggin which just twenty short years ago were considered two of the most industrialized and polluted rivers in the state, Maine is developing a non-native trout fishery unmatched anywhere else in the northeast.

The Kennebec is Maine's second largest river next to the Penobscot of Atlantic salmon fame. Starting at Moosehead Lake (the largest lake in Maine), the Kennebec runs south more than 150 miles to the Atlantic Ocean. For almost its entire length, the Kennebec is inhabited by multiple species of salmonids including brook trout, landlocked salmon, rainbow trout, and brown trout with many wild populations throughout the upper half. This is amazing when you consider that the Kennebec was used for driving logs right up until the late 1970's.

Like most of New England's industrial rivers, the Kennebec has been heavily dammed and subjected to many forms of abuse over the years. However, thanks to changes in the logging industry, improvements in wastewater discharges and Mother Nature's inherent resilience, the Kennebec is cleaner today than it has been in generations. With this clean up has come a new focus on the Kennebec's potential as a recreational resource. In addition to whitewater rafting, fishing has now become a focus of many local businesses and advocacy groups.

Make no mistake about it the Kennebec is work-in-progress. As such, I believe that we have only just begun to understand its full potential. Having fished extensively throughout New England and much of the west, I can assure you that there is no river in the northeast that has the potential for providing season long quality trout angling that the Kennebec has. With 50+ miles of river capable of harboring trout and salmon, plenty of public access, adequate water flows in even the driest of years, and strong hatches, the Kennebec is a true diamond-in-the-rough.

The Germans are Coming...

First stocked in the early 1940's and then ignored until the mid 1980's, non-native brown trout are gaining in popularity and growing to rather respectable sizes in stretches of the Kennebec that were long considered warmwater fisheries. Introduced in the lower and middle Kennebec by the Maine Division of Inland Fisheries & Wildlife (DIF&W) in an attempt to create a recreational fishery within an easy drive of the state capital in Augusta, the browns in the lower Kennebec have become some of the most fished for salmonids in the state.

Stocked from Solon down to Augusta, brown trout are the predominant salmonid in the middle and lower Kennebec. In addition, recent surveys performed on the river have found naturally reproducing brown trout in the middle and upper river as well as one small tributary to the lower Dead River just north of where it dumps in to the Kennebec. Those familiar with the area will tell you that these browns have been in the river for many years and typically represent some of the largest fish taken each year.

New to most local anglers, these wary browns test the resolve of traditional brook trout fishermen. Where Hornbergs and traditional streamers were once the flies of choice, emergers, nymphs, sculpin imitations and tiny dry flies are now required to consistently catch fish. In addition, those serious about the Kennebec's browns have had to change their tackle selection. Where 6-weight rods, Pfluegar Medalist reels, and 4x Maxima tippet was once standard fare, 4-weights rods, modern disc drag reels, and 6x tippet are not uncommon.

In addition, while the spirit of the late Carrie Stevens (inventor of the famous Grey Ghost and many other traditional Maine streamers) might cringe at the thought of streamers tied with anything other than hackle, bucktail, peacock, golden/silver pheasant, jungle cock, silk floss, etc., patterns tied with materials relatively new to northern New England but long popular our west such as rabbit strips, ram's wool, diamond braid, krystal flash, coneheads, etc., are now readily available at local Fly Shops.

For the wading angler, the best places to fish for browns on the middle Kennebec River are Shawmut Dam just north of Fairfield (best accessed off of Route 201) and "The Pines" in Madison (best accessed from Father Rasle Road just south of town off Route 201A). For the private or commercial driftboat or canoe angler, the stretch of river between The Evergreens Campground off Route 201A in Solon and the "Dump Road" in North Anson represents the finest float fishing trip in the central part of the state.

"Mainely" Rainbows...

As for rainbow trout, while getting a lot of attention from the DIF&W, Trout Unlimited (TU), Sportsman's Alliance of Maine (SAM), and both local and visiting anglers these days, rainbows have in fact been present in the Kennebec since at least the late 1960's. Remnants of a long discontinued state sponsored stocking program, the rainbows below Wyman Dam in Bingham have established a self-sustaining wild population that is unquestionably the strongest in not only Maine, but in all of New England.

Dating back to the days of Gadabout Gaddis and his "Flying Fisherman" TV Show, Bingham was once considered one of the finest Rainbow fisheries in the east. While still holding on, these rainbows must contend with a lot of issues to survive. In addition to having been managed under extremely liberal regulations by the DIF&W (bait, 12" length limit and 2 fish daily limit), the primary spawning habitat Austin Stream has been severely damaged by dredging on more than one occasion under the guise of bridge construction and flood control.

A local TU chapter petitioned the DIF&W for permission to stock rainbows in the Kennebec below Shawmut Dam just north of Fairfield. This experiment was so popular with local anglers that the state decided to take it over and now regularly stocks rainbows in this stretch of river. Although not stocked by the DIF&W, rainbows are also present in the Kennebec in both Solon and Madison. While no one is 100% sure where they come from, a reasonable theory is that they are drop-downs from the Bingham section with some level of natural reproduction possible.

While rainbows are present throughout much of the Kennebec, the absolute best place to fish for them is between Wyman Dam in Bingham and Carratunk Falls in Solon. The wading angler can access this section of river from Wyman Dam, the Route 16 Bridge, or the abandoned railroad bed just south of the old Gadabout Gaddis Airport. In addition, boat anglers can float from just below the Route 16 Bridge down to the Williams Boat Launch in Solon. Anglers need to pay special attention when wading this stretch of river as the water levels fluctuate significantly.

The Future...

While it should not be done at the expense of Maine's native salmonids, developing non-native salmonid fisheries in waters such as the Kennebec through stocking and "Put-and-Grow" management should be done to provide additional recreational opportunities and help take pressure off of our heavily stressed native species. In addition, these fisheries would provide additional revenue to the DIF&W in the form of increased license sales as well as providing significant economic relief to local economies that have been hit hard by the loss of jobs.

For non-native salmonid fishing in Maine to reach the next level, a greater commitment on the part of both the Maine DIF&W and local angling community will be required. Specifically, the DIF&W must implement regulations that ensure the protection of both pre-spawn and large fish. In addition, changes in regard to current stocking practices such as the implementation of a float-stocking program should be considered. Lastly, habitat restoration, angler education and increased law enforcement will be needed to ensure success.

While it would be a sad day if anglers were to come to Maine solely to fish for non-native species, there is a place for them and managed properly, they could compliment Maine's native salmonids and provide anglers with some of the finest and most diverse coldwater fishing available in the northeast. With some luck, a little cooperation, and a lot of hard work, this could really take off in the next few years. Until then, you'll just have to come up and experience for yourself New England's newest and most under exploited "non-native" salmonid fishery.

Bob Mallard has been a flyfisherman and fly tyer for over 25 years and is the owner of Kennebec River Outfitters on Route 201 in Madison, ME. He can be reached at (207) 474-2500 or www.kennebecriveroutfitters.com.