Rainbow trout are a nice consolation prize when pursuing Pontook brown trout. (STEVE ANGERS PHOTO)

Rainbow trout are a nice consolation prize when pursuing Pontook brown trout. (STEVE ANGERS PHOTO)

When Bill Thompson was writing the fishing column for The Conway Daily Sun, he would write about his annual fishing trip to Maine. He would stop at the Pontook Dam on the Androscoggin to fish, time permitting.

While I have fished New Hampshire since the age of 6, the Pontook Dam was one place where I had not done some angling. Thompson’s stories always piqued my interest. I never pulled the trigger on visiting the area until I purchased the North Country Angler and wanted to keep the tradition alive.

My first attempt at fishing the Pontook Dam area was dicey. I had been told by Mason Thagouras, White Mountain Anglers, about the trickiness of wading the dam area. Not only was the area loaded with varying sizes of rocks and dam debris, but everything was covered in a thin slim making the rocks slippery as well as unpredictable.

Having fished the Errol stretch of the Androscoggin for years, I proceeded to catch one bass after another with the flies that worked on trout in Errol. A very humbling experience.

The following year, I was a more educated angler. I had asked customers and guides for their intel on success in fishing below the dam. It was clear that the black caddis was the fly if you were going to catch a fish at Pontook.

With a fly box full of black caddis and a new set of Orvis Ultralight wading boots off I went to try and catch a trout. Hope was high.

The Ultralight boots were just the ticket. The boots took the slimy rocks out of play. The dam debris continued to be a challenge. Working across the base of the dam, I took a position halfway across and 30 feet away from the dam. The sun was still on the water. I chose a Pink Lady wet fly to start.

Casting the fly to the base of the dam, I began a slow retrieve. A plump brown trout grabbed the fly. The trout was played quickly and returned to the water. From then until dark, the only fish brought to hand were bass.

As dark descended upon the dam pool, a flurry of black caddis could be seen in the air. Fish began to rise throughout the pool. The backs of larger brown trout could be seen in the lights from the dam house — huge brown trout.

On this night, those fish had no interest in the flies I offered. Those big brown trout haunted me in my dreams.

Each year, I have done the annual trip to Pontook Dam. Each year trout and bass are brought to hand. Each year, the big brown trout surface in the light of the dam house. Each year, the dreams of hooking one of those brown trout gets more intense.

Anglers are experiential learners. Each trip to Pontook raised my fishing IQ. I knew that the fish of Pontook had seen hundreds of artificial Black Caddis dry flies. This year it was time to think outside the box.

After writing the article about the Devil Bug, I decided to tie an all black Devil Bug to imitate the black caddis but give the fish a different silhouette. I tied them on a Fulling Mill barbless 2x hook, size 16, but tied the fly as if the hook was a size 18.

As the darkness descended, the brown trout began to porpoise in the light of the dam house. I tied one of the black Devil Bugs on to my 5.5x tippet. I laid the fly in the area of the most recent brown trout rise. Seconds after the fly landed, I saw a rise ring in the area where the fly should be. I raised by rod to set the hook.

The line went tight. The fish took line and took line and took line. I never stopped the fish. It went under the dam boards and the line went slack.

The dreams of hooking and landing a Pontook brown trout will have to continue until next season.

During low water, tie flies in small sizes on larger hooks. This will give the angler better odds of hooking and landing large fish.

Steve Angers, a native to the Conway area, is the author of the book “Fly Fishing New Hampshire’s Secret Waters” and operates the North Country Angler.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

Click Below To Read Today's Replica Edition!

Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.

Error! There was an error processing your request.

Would you like to receive a link to the Conway Daily Sun online eEdition and preview the top stories? Signup today!

Get up-to-the-minute news sent straight to your device.

Get the latest news first, with up to the minute coverage of local events.  Signup Today!  

Would you like to receive a link to the Berlin Sun online eEdition and preview the top stories? Signup today!

Get the latest news first, with up to the minute coverage of local events.  Signup Today!

Would you like to receive a link to the Conway Daily Sun online eEdition and preview the top stories? Signup today!

Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.

Check your email for details.

Invalid password or account does not exist

Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.

An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.

Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.

A receipt was sent to your email.