The public boat launch on Minnehonk Lake is one busy place this afternoon!
Minnehonk Lake is a 99-acre body of water located in Mount Vernon, Maine (see the Maine Atlas and Gazetteer map 12 A3). The public access is located at the northern tip of the lake off Main Street in the downtown area. Be aware that this access point is a busy place on summer weekends, with local residents swimming, picnicking and socializing. The launch is not hard-topped or improved but can easily accommodate small motorized boats. Plenty of parking is available on Main Street for cars without trailers. However, no spaces exist for vehicles with trailers, which have to be squeezed on the road shoulder. Also, be aware that it is tricky backing up a vehicle with a boat trailer into position to go down the launch because all of that maneuvering must occur right in the middle of Main Street.
General view of Minnehonk Lake towards the northern shore and the boat launch
I arrive at the public access point for Minnehonk Lake at 4:45 pm. My goodness, the place is hopping! Half a dozen families and their kids are swimming, jumping and kayaking around the small dock and several nearby floating platforms. It’s quite a beehive of activity. I gingerly weave my trailer down to the water, making sure not to drive on anyone’s belongings, and take off at 5 pm. I only have one hour to make something happen on the water this afternoon. I motor straight to the opposite end of the lake to get away from the summer commotion and to check out a shallow embayment I noticed on Google Maps while preparing for this trip. The western side of the lake is dominated by Route 41 (Pond Road) which runs right along that entire shoreline. About two dozen houses are concentrated along the eastern shoreline. They are discretely tucked into the woods away from the lake’s shore. To my surprise, few of the docks have powered boats and I see no boat traffic on the water during my visit.
The short causeway to the back bay is too shallow and bouldery for my boat to make it through
Several features strike me on my way out to the other side of Minnehonk Lake. First, the water level is quite low. Based on the “bath tub ring” visible along the entire shoreline, it looks like the water is close to 2 ft below normal. It certainly shows that we’re having an abnormally dry summer. Second, the water is very clear and transparent, with up to 20 ft of visibility through the water column. Third, the shoreline is essentially devoid of any floating or emergent vegetation because the bottom drops quickly away from the banks (note: the maximum and mean depth of this long and narrow lake is 73 ft and 32 ft, respectively). Fourth, the amount of lay-down wood along the shoreline appears to be minimal, which limits the structure available to hold bass. Finally, the substrate consists mostly of gravel, cobbles, and boulders. My overall impression, therefore, is that the available habitat is more suitable for smallmouth bass than largemouth bass. Click here for a depth map and more fisheries information.
This big boy made it all worthwhile!
My fishing plan runs aground, literally, when I arrive at the northern end of Minnehonk Lake: the low water level has caused the short causeway connecting the lake to its shallow back bay to be impassible for my boat. There’s only about 1 ft of bouldery water. It’s too bad that I cannot squeeze my way in because that whole back area looks really inviting. I’m betting that it would also be a great spot for targeting spawning bass in the spring because of its shallowness and the fact that it would warm up quickly. But I’ll have to check that theory out some other time. Instead, the general area in front of the causeway looks interesting: it’s 5 to 10 ft deep before plunging down and is covered with loose patches of submerged aquatic vegetation that should provide good hiding habitat for bass. I start by fan casting a buzzbait all around the area and am rewarded within 15 minutes with a strong surface hit. Wow, this bass isn’t a baby! The fish rips off line and tries to bury itself into the aquatic vegetation. It then makes two leaps into the air before giving up. Nice fight! Meanwhile. the area has become quite noisy with the arrival of a dozen kids who are jumping into the lake from a rope swing attached to a nearby tree along Route 41. They’re also listening to loud music blaring out of their cars. Not my cup of tea… I move on and focus my attention on the shoreline next to Route 41. I notice several trees that have fallen into the water. Those have got to hold fish given the lack of any other habitat in the vicinity and the fact that the water depth reaches 20+ ft right off-shore. I use a soft stickbait which I let sink in and amongst the submerged branches. I get several hits but land only a smallmouth bass. Unfortunately, my hour is over and I have to move on.
The results: I caught one largemouth bass (18”) and one smallmouth bass (12”) in one hour 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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Really enjoy your escapades and the informative info, you provide.
I checked out the boat launch in downtown Auburn and how ironic, as you mentioned, that the parking with a boat trailor is utterly impossible.
Whoever devised this must have had no knowledge of what’s needed.
Yes, I agree that the lack of parking accommodations on Main Street for trailered vehicles is a real challenge. It really limits access to this lake.