Middle Range Pond is a 366-acre body of water located in Poland, Androscoggin County, Maine (see The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 5 A3). To access this pond, drive on Route 26 and look for Cyndi’s Dockside Restaurant located at the northwestern tip of the pond. Beware that this access point is part of a privately owned marina and that the restaurant folks charge a $20 fee to launch a boat from their ramp. If you are planning on using a motorized craft, a free alternative is to use the public boat ramp on Upper Range Pond off Range Hill Road, and motor underneath the road bridge into Middle Range Pond. That is not an issue for me this morning since I am not fishing from a boat but from waders. However, I suspect that the owners may frown upon anglers leaving their vehicles at the restaurant parking lot. I therefore leave my vehicle on the shoulder of Route 26 close to the premise and access the pond by crossing the road guard rail instead of walking on private property.

View of the private boat ramp. Busy Route 26 is visible on the right of this picture.

Middle Range Pond is a well-developed lake in southern Androscoggin County. The state maintains a popular salmonid fishery consisting of rainbow trout, brown trout, and brook trout. My goal this morning is to land a few of the 150 13-inch brook trout that were stocked earlier this fall in anticipation of the ice fishing season. My secret “stretch” goal is to hook one of the 30 20-inch brook trout that were also released earlier… Fall fishing on Middle Range Pond occurs under the general fishing laws applicable to the South Zone. Angling is allowed between October 1 and December 31 using artificial lures only and with the stipulation that all salmonids must be released at once. This pond as a mean and maximum depth of 29 ft. and 66 ft., respectively. Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information.

The brookies are at their post!

I arrive at Middle Range Pond at 6:30 am in my waders and dressed up warmly, including gloves and hat. Even though the air temperature is a surprisingly benign 48°F, the water is quite cold, the sky is gloomy and overcast, and a stiff breeze blows in from the southwest. I fish using my usual fall angling tools consisting of an ultralight spinning rod, a small spinning reel spooled with 6-pound monofilament, and a #2 Mepps spinner. I cross the road guard rail, enter the water, and walk towards the boat ramp. I start fan casting from the launch and do not get a single bite in the first 15 minutes. That means that I need to keep on looking. I do not walk to the left of the ramp, nor do I fish from the very enticing marina docks to stay out of private property. Instead, I start wading to my right, back towards Route 26.

That is one well-fed brook trout!

The wading conditions at this location are acceptable. The amount of aquatic vegetation is greatly reduced this time of the year. The water depth also increases quickly away from shore. The bottom alternates between a soft, muddy substrate and annoying uneven cobbles. In fact, one hour into my fishing trip, I stumble over a larger submerged rock, fall forward in about 3 ft. of water, and wet my sleeves up to my armpits and feel ice-cold water flowing all the way down to my feet, even though I am protected by a tight belly belt. That does not stop my fishing but fully wakes me up! I also start catching brookies. The fish are not acting suicidal because the bite is slow but steady. I land five brook trout measuring 12 to 14 inches in an hour. I also hook into a 13-inch rainbow trout. Unfortunately, I did not encounter any of the three-pound brood stock trout as I had hoped. Regardless, I consider this fishing a success because I am not leaving skunked! One last but important point: do not expect a quiet experience fishing at this location because the traffic on Route 26 is loud and relentless…

This little rainbow trout was an unexpected, though welcome, guest!

The results: I caught five brookies (largest = 14 inches) and one 13-inch rainbow trout in 1.5 hours of fishing.

Was the information in this blog useful? I invite you to share your thoughts and opinions. Also, feel free to discuss your fishing experiences at this location.

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