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First Connecticut Lake Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 11, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

The top of New Hampshire: First Connecticut Lake holds landlocked salmon and lake trout near the border.

4/5
Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.
Water temp
~66 F est.
Air / High
42 / 57 F
Wind
W 5 mph

Sources: Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
11
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

4/5Good. Solid day ahead.Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

First Connecticut Lake lines up a genuinely fishable day across the board. Today brings clear skies, wind W around 5 mph, falling pressure near 1010 hPa and a high of 57. Water sits around 66 F for the season (estimated). With the new moon, the solunar majors run 11:32 PM-1:32 AM and 11:32 AM-1:32 PM: the windows to build the day around.

The plan, species by species

Landlocked salmonExcellent

Transition depths: work 15-30 ft along drop-offs and points with trolled smelt imitations, or find them where cold tributaries enter. Early morning is the honest window.

Brook troutExcellent

Prime pocket-water fishing. Work upstream with an attractor dry or a dry-dropper, hitting every seam behind boulders and the head of each plunge pool. Short casts, quiet feet.

Smallmouth bassExcellent

Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

Lake troutGood

Transition depths: work 40-80 ft structure edges with white tubes and flutter spoons. Early mornings can find fish surprisingly high over deep water chasing bait.

Tomorrow: Warmer at 69 F. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 12, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Before you go

New Hampshire requires a fishing licence from age 16, from $45.00 for residents. What a New Hampshire licence costs and where to buy it →

Chasing landlocked salmon here? Check the size and bag limits with NHFG before you keep anything.

Water and weather

Live readings.

No live gauge on this water

Conditions here are modeled from weather, season and the nearest stations. Water readings appear when a USGS gauge is available.

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp42 F
High / Low57 / 43 F
WindW 5-13 mph
Pressure1010.2 hPa, falling
Sky / Rain2% cloud, 0%
Sunrise / Sunset06:19 / 19:03
MoonNew Moon, 0%
Water temp (seasonal)~66 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 11 · Clear, 57/43 F, wind 13 mph, rain 0%

Fair or better. A 13 mph breeze puts a working chop on the banks it hits: fish the wind-blown side.

Species guide

The species that matter on First Connecticut Lake: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Landlocked salmon illustration

Landlocked salmon

Best: ice-out through June, and September

Atlantic salmon that never see the sea: smelt-chasing acrobats of Maine and New England lakes, and the reason ice-out is a holiday up north. Transition depths: work 15-30 ft along drop-offs and points with trolled smelt imitations, or find them where cold tributaries enter. Early morning is the honest window.

Brook trout illustration

Brook trout

Best: May-Jun and Sep-Oct

North America’s native char: a small-stream specialist that demands cold, clean water and repays it with the prettiest fish in the woods. Prime pocket-water fishing. Work upstream with an attractor dry or a dry-dropper, hitting every seam behind boulders and the head of each plunge pool. Short casts, quiet feet.

Lake trout illustration

Lake trout

Best: ice-out and fall turnover

The char of the deep: 40-year-old predators patrolling the cold basins of glacial lakes, from the Finger Lakes to the Rockies. Transition depths: work 40-80 ft structure edges with white tubes and flutter spoons. Early mornings can find fish surprisingly high over deep water chasing bait.

Smallmouth bass illustration

Smallmouth bass

Best: May-Oct

Current and rock. Finds gravel flats, boulders and drop-offs, and fights far above its weight. Peak season. Tubes, jerkbaits and swimbaits around gravel points, boulders and current seams.

When to come: the First Connecticut Lake calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Landlocked salmon
Brook trout
Lake trout
Smallmouth bass
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 66 F (estimated, not a reading).

304050607080JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~66 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks First Connecticut Lake today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 10

3/5 Fair. Fish the windows. A steady pattern: dawn and dusk carry the day. Landlocked salmon led the card at good. High of 67 F, wind to 19 mph.

Wed, Sep 9

4/5 Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up. Landlocked salmon led the card at excellent. High of 62 F, wind to 10 mph.

Tue, Sep 8

5/5 Excellent. Go now. Everything lines up: pressure, wind and light are in your favor. Landlocked salmon led the card at excellent. High of 65 F, wind to 11 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

New Hampshire requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

New Hampshire license. Landlocked salmon and lake trout are size- and season-regulated: check current NH Fish and Game rules for the Connecticut Lakes.

Access

State boat launch off Route 3 in Pittsburg; lodges and camps throughout the Connecticut Lakes region.

About this water

A 2,800-acre headwater lake of the Connecticut River in Pittsburg, Coos County, New Hampshire.

Fishing First Connecticut Lake: the full guide

A lake at the headwaters

First Connecticut Lake covers about 2,800 acres in Pittsburg, New Hampshire, the largest of the Connecticut Lakes chain that forms the headwaters of the Connecticut River, a few miles from the Quebec border. It is deep, cold and forested, holding landlocked salmon, lake trout, rainbow trout and brook trout in genuinely wild country.

Salmon and lake trout

Landlocked salmon are the headline fish, trolled with streamers and small spoons near the surface at ice-out and again in fall, and taken deeper through summer. Lake trout hold the deep basins and are taken by trolling lead core and downriggers or by jigging. Both fisheries are managed carefully and produce quality fish.

Ice and the seasons

Winter brings a serious ice fishery for salmon, lake trout and other species, and the North Country freezes early and stays frozen. Ice-out in spring brings the best surface trolling of the year. Summer pushes fish deep. Fall trolling before the season closes is the other prime window.

Pittsburg logistics

Access is via Route 3 through Pittsburg with a state boat launch, lodges and camps serving the Connecticut Lakes region. Pittsburg is the largest township in New Hampshire and one of the emptiest: services are limited and distances are long. Second Connecticut Lake, Lake Francis and the river connectors add more water.

Common questions

When is salmon fishing best?

At ice-out in spring for surface trolling, and again in fall before the season closes.

Is there ice fishing?

Yes: the North Country freezes early, and salmon and lake trout are taken through the ice all winter.

What else is nearby?

Second Connecticut Lake, Lake Francis and the connecting river reaches, all within the Pittsburg area.

Is fishing good at First Connecticut Lake right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Good. Solid day ahead. Stable-to-falling pressure and workable wind line things up.

Nearby waters

Androscoggin River22 miKennebago Lake24 miUmbagog Lake25 miMooselookmeguntic Lake26 miRangeley Lake29 miRapid River29 mi
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