MAINE PUBLIC • February 16, 2023
This year's warm winter weather has made ice fishing impossible on some water bodies across southern and coastal Maine. Jim McPherson is the owner of Jim's Smelt Camps, which offers winter smelt fishing along the Cathance River in Bowdoinham. McPherson says that the river has still not iced over enough for safe fishing this year, forcing him to make the decision to cancel the entire season earlier this month. Mark Latti, communications director for the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, says ice fishing derbies have already been canceled, and while the situation in northern Maine is better, some areas have still been affected by the warmth.