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In this travel adventure, I’m fishing in the Mountains and Lakes region of Maine in an idyllic rustic mountain town called Rangeley, near the Canadian border. It’s one of those places that you venture out to if you want to relax and be one with nature.

However, for many like myself, it was also a safe haven from the early pandemic of 2020.

The fishing excursion I’m about to share marks my first day venturing out in Maine after fleeing Florida to escape the rising numbers which had initially stopped me in the middle of a 6 month trip. Little did I know, that I’d love Maine so much that I’d stay for much longer than a lockdown.

Read on as I share my fishing adventures in Maine and what you need to know to have the best possible experience.

[This post was originally posted in July 2020, updated November 2022]

Maine is a Nature Loverโ€™s Paradise and my mind has been going off the hook with adventure possibilities!

  • White Water Rafting
  • Biking
  • Moose Watching
  • Fishing
  • Swimming
  • Kayaking
  • Tubing
  • Hikingโ€ฆ the list goes on

However, some of the activities (like fishing) are much harder to commit to than others. Why? Because you have to wake up before sunrise to do them! 

Ainโ€™t no rest for the wicked…

Anyone who knows me can tell you that waking up early is not my forte. ๐Ÿ˜‰ I usually donโ€™t leave the house before noonโ€ฆ Having Lupus makes it tricky to get my body moving before late morning usually. 

For that reason, there are very few things Iโ€™ll wake up early to do. 

Catch a flightโ€ฆ sure, itโ€™s necessary.

Spot a Mooseโ€ฆ who wouldnโ€™t want to do that?

Sneak off at 4 AM for a late-night bite at the diner with my momโ€ฆ sweet childhood memories… ๐Ÿ˜Š

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Go Fish! Fishing in Maine

Wanting to get a head start on my Maine bucket list, I decided to start with a fishing trip in Maine. Easy enough right? How hard is it to catch a fish? 

Evidently quite hardโ€ฆ I had to wake up at 3 AM to do it. Early bird gets the worm as they say.. or in this case, the early bird gets the fish. ๐Ÿ˜‰

โ€œMy last salmon fishing trip, I caught a 31โ€ Silver (Coho) Salmon in Ketchikan, Alaskaโ€ฆโ€

Geeves

Find a Fishing Charter in Maine

Bingo!

After some research, I found, Westwind Charters. A review online said โ€œYou catch a lot of fishโ€ Yayyy  โ€œbut the guy leaves hella early.โ€ Ewwwโ€ฆ

And they Did. Not. Lie.

I set my hopes very high. Would be getting to bed at 9 PM, waking at 3 AM. At least over 5 hours of shuteye.

Now, did this actually happen? No.. of course not. What kind of story would that be? ๐Ÿ˜‰

Instead, I went to bed at midnight as usual, with my alarm set for 3 AM. If you guessed that I was cranky that morningโ€ฆ. Youโ€™d have guessed wrong.

I know! I surprised myself too. Didnโ€™t think Iโ€™d be energetic so that early. Was excited to catch me some dinner!

The boat is a 20โ€™ Lund Alaskan. For non-fishers, this means no head & no cabin space. Standard fishing boat, no-frills. If you like to sit back, relax & enjoy, this is the fishing trip for you!

How I Prepared Night Before

The trick to getting up early was packing everything we needed the night before so we wouldnโ€™t forget in our state of semi-consciousness.


Shop my Amazon Fishing Packing List

Take a look at my fishing packing list and see everything I brought on my fishing trip in Maine.


FUN FACT

Landlocked Salmon and Atlantic Salmon are the same species. Being that one lives in the saltwater and the other, in freshwater, they have slightly different geneticsโ€ฆ As the name suggests, the term, โ€œLandlocked Salmonโ€ is an Atlantic Salmon population thatโ€™s been isolated from the Atlantic Ocean. Landlocked Salmon are a lot less pink since their diet is different, mainly no shrimp.

Our Fishing Trip in Maine

Geeves and her sister geared up in windbreakers, sitting in their beach chairs in the boat over Rangeley Lake
Actually, that was pretty much her face when I asked her.

Rangeley Lake here we come!

My sister, the brave soul that she is, agreed to get up at 3 AM to come with me on the fishing trip at Rangeley Lake.

Here, it’s so quiet and peaceful that you can hear the birds and if you’re lucky, see moose which I was convinced of.

On our way up, I was staring intently out the window through the fog and darkness, looking for them. I believe I spotted 2… Then again, it was early and I was tired, so it could have just been a tree. Iโ€™m just gonna keep telling myself it was a moose. ๐Ÿ˜Š

Rangeley Lake

Rangeley Lake at dawn

Arriving at the dock, we were so spooked! It was quite ominous. The thick fog made it near impossible to see anything but the faint silhouette of a boatโ€ฆ

Larry, a self-described โ€œcurmudgeonโ€ and a certified Maine Wilderness Guide, was at the dock waiting for us to climb aboard. We werenโ€™t scared at all. ๐Ÿ˜‰

Fog over Rangeley Lake

He was a rather quiet man at first.. which added to the overall mysterious vibes the lake was giving off already. Very Stephen King book-worthy.  

If you look closely, you can see the boat pulling up to the dock. Almost like a scene from a scary movieโ€ฆ

Real Girl Review Safety Tip

In all seriousness, we left a note in our car with his information, the date, and the time before we left. Good safety measures, regardless of your gender. Even more so for females, especially at such an early hour with no one around. We ended up being safe, but you never know.

Waves as the boat is driven over the lake
Geeves happily fishing

Fishing in Rangeley Lake

Using fly rods to fish for Landlocked Salmon & Brook Trout was a unique experience. The goal here (like in most fishing), is to wear the fish out before it wears you out, lol. 

If the fish is tugging on the line, you release it, rather than reeling fast and steady like you would with other types of fishing. This is a new concept for most people as theyโ€™re used to working with stronger lines and doing the opposite action. I enjoyed learning a new type of fishing.

Steering wheel and dashboard of the boat with a hand on it guiding it
Steering the boat like a boss, watching the screen for fish.

Iโ€™ve Fished in Quite a Few Places

Fishing for me is about more than catching a fish, itโ€™s an experience. 

As the captain pointed out after listening to all of my fishing stories (there were quite a few, lol), Iโ€™ve fished in a lot of different places.

The places I’ve fished in:

  • Alaska
  • California
  • Florida
  • New York
  • North Carolina
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • Virginia

FUN FACT

The Landlocked Salmon is Maineโ€™s official state fish. Theyโ€™re also known as Sebago Salmon or Quananiche. Its scientific name is Salmo salar.

Fishermen Are Full of Stories

Geeves sitting back enjoying a mug of cocoa while looking out over the lake

So often, you do an excursion and feel the need to fill the silence with polite conversation instead of relaxing. Our guide was not a curmudgeon, he was actually incredibly knowledgeable, friendly, and allowed you to be in your own thoughts without disruption which was perfect.

He told the occasional story about the history of the lake which I really enjoyed. I wanted to hear more. Fishermen have the best stories.

According to Larry, back in the day, wealthy vacationers would come to Rangeley to get away from the city and fish in the Lake. The town banned ice fishing for the locals to keep all the fish for the vacationers bringing in money. There were also 3 mega-resorts that were built around the lake to house the out-of-towners.

Unfortunately, despite the ban on ice fishing, (due mostly to the fact that there were no fishing limits in place), the economy shriveled up, tourists stopped coming, and the hotels were abandoned and later demolished. The ban for ice fishing is still on the books and has never been repealed.

This was the answer to our question, โ€œSo is there ice fishing here?โ€ Lol

We Caught Enough For Dinner

19-inch long landlocked salmon fish

We didnโ€™t catch any Brook Trout. Instead, Landlocked Salmon. Hey, Iโ€™ll take it! We caught our limit (1 each). We did a cheer!

My sister ended up catching the biggest (19โ€).

Young lady holding up a 19-inch salmon that she caught

The Salmon that I caught was a good size too. I remember when I first reeled it in, I was scared to lose all 16 delicious inches of it. But I kept reeling, slowly and gently until we could use the net to bring it in the boat.

What to Do with Salmon After You Catch Them

Donโ€™t freeze them or theyโ€™ll take on a different taste. Refrigerating is fine for up to a few days after you catch them.

Winner, Winner, Fish Dinner!

salmon dinner stuffed with lemon and herbes served over a wood cutting board, a glass of white wine and bottle, and a vase full of sunflowers

It was so nice to make a meal of the fish we caught ourselves! It felt awesome.

Where to Stay

If you’re spending some time in Rangeley and the surrounding area, you’re in luck. You have a lot of options to choose from whether you’re looking for a boutique Inn or B&B with cabin feels or a hotel.

That’s a Wrap!

Hopefully, youโ€™ve got some useful info and enjoyed reading about my travel adventure fishing in Maine! Have you been fishing? Where? What kind of fish did you catch? Tell me in the comments below!

If you enjoyed this blog, share it on Pinterest!

illustration of geeves flying a kite

To become part of the journey and stay up to date on all thatโ€™s happening at Real Girl Review, subscribe (below) and follow me on TikTokInstagramTwitter.

Thank you so much for your continued love and support! I wouldnโ€™t be here if it werenโ€™t for you.

Until next timeโ€ฆ keep it real.

If you enjoyed this post, you might also like:

20 Helpful Tips for Traveling with a Chronic Illness

A Fun Summer Day at Old Orchard Beach Pier, Maine

Fish Trip Packing List: What to Bring Fishing?

Easy Salmon Recipe: Winner, Winner, Salmon Dinner!

Magical Lighthouses of Maine to Experience

Virginia City Nevada | Ghost Town in the Wild West


Fact Check:

At Real Girl Review, we value truth and always strive for accuracy. Posts are updated regularly. If you read something that still doesnโ€™t sound right, contact me at gv@realgirlreview.com. I will investigate the facts and make changes as I deem necessary.

8 Comments

  1. Neither am I Henry! Haha.. But, it’s something you do just to say you did. They also have afternoon fishing charters.

  2. Hey Joyce! ๐Ÿ™‚ Luckily, Rangeley Lake is so much more than fishing! Since you’ll be there in October, check out Smalls Falls. The Fall foliage is absolutely beautiful.

  3. Hate fishing but enjoy eating them. I love Rangeley Lake and plan to visit there in October and so far it is my favorite spot because it is lovely and also a very quiet place where one can relax.

  4. Hi Mark! It’s amazing to see how passionate you are about fishing! 250 pollack is no joke! I’ll have to catch me some next time I’m on the Maine coast. Thanks for the tip! I’ll let my other fishing enthusiasts know too. Thank you for reading my blog! ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. Sounds like u love fishing…very nice to see…if u ever get a chance to go out ocean fishing for some good pollack u should….every time I go out…..which is every other week……me and 1 other person catch roughly 250 pollack…..I have many friends that live it so it never goes to waste. And it is so much fun…..u r constantly racing to get ur line back in water…..I am talking off the coast of Maine…..fishing is the best….enjoy!

  6. Goodness gracious Jay! You sound like a true fisherman! Makes my fishing trip seem little! Haha! ๐Ÿ™‚ It’s great to know you enjoy fishing so much. Can I count on you for a fish tip on my next trip? ๐Ÿ˜‰

  7. I have caught literally thousands of sea run salmon, both commercially and sport fishing, plus striped bass, tunas from albacore to giant blue fin, wahoo, mahi-mahi, striped marlin, sailfish, swordfish, barracuda, as well as dozens of salmo salar, bass, brook trout, rainbow trout, etc. in my life.

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