BANGOR DAILY NEWS • May 28, 2020
As soon as Edwards Dam on the Kennebec River in Augusta was removed in 1999, Willie Grenier of Waterville was among the anglers trying to figure out the new fishery that would result. Some of his old haunts for brown trout fishing weren’t as productive, but other spots — and other species — quickly teemed with fish. Among the fish that flourished: American shad, which were suddenly able to swim into waters that they’d not had access to in more than 100 years. For people like Grenier, who have spent time figuring out the habits of shad, the fishery provides the opportunity to tangle with dozens of hard-fighting 4- and 5-pound fish in just a few hours far upstream.