Julie Wojieck, 15, of Adams, above, landed a 19 1/8-inch, 4 1/2-lb. largemouth bass, using a shiner for bait, to take home the winner’s trophy for largest fish. (Photos by Glenn Drohan)
Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of articles about the Hoosic River, in conjunction with the second annual “Hoosic Moments†writing contest. Contest details below.
One would expect a watershed 720 square miles in size, with steep headwater streams and placid run-of-river reservoirs, deep glides beneath butternut branches and long stretches of cobble riffles through shrub swamps and ponds — and lakes big and small — to have lots of fishy diversity. The Hoosic River and its tributaries do not disappoint.
Throw out a blue-winged olive fly on the North Branch in Vermont or Massachusetts, the Walloomsac River in New York, or the Hoosic main stem almost anywhere in the three states. If you’re skillful, your reward could be a trout – probably a brook or brown trout in upstream waters, a brown or rainbow in the downstream reaches — some of the browns can get to trophy size of 5 pounds or more.
Throw out a popper or live bait on the main stem below the Buskirk, N.Y., covered bridge or in the Schaghticoke reservoir, and you might reel in a channel catfish or a white sucker, an American eel or a largemouth bass. Drop a line in the Tomhannock Reservoir in January and pull out a bluegill, a crappie, even walleye. The Hoosic watershed’s rivers, streams and lakes, are, many anglers say, one of the best-kept fishing secrets in the region.
Although Massachusetts stocks trout in several reaches, and New York stocks portions of the Walloomsac, many of the fish you’ll encounter are wild. This is especially true later in the season (Massachusetts and New York stock in the spring, and the fish are soon caught or preyed upon.) Wild trout are quite likely on the main stem of the river from the Pownal dam to the confluence with the Walloomsac in North Hoosick, and then again downstream of the Hoosick Falls hydroelectric plant to near Eagle Bridge. Downstream of the bridge, trout become uncommon altogether as warm water fishes take over.
Colder water and trout upstream, warm water with pan fish and bass downstream is the rule in the Hoosic watershed. (There are exceptions to any rule – like the concrete flood chutes in Adams and North Adams, which significantly warm waters and impair trout habitat.) Nonetheless, the watershed truly does offer something for nearly every tackle box.
But not for every frying pan. A fish-consumption advisory has been in effect for more than a decade on the Hoosic in Massachusetts and Vermont, where it is recommended that no fish of any kind be eaten, ever, due to PCB contamination. (Polychlorinated biphenyls persist in sediments, although there is no present-day polluter, according to environmental officials.)
In New York, however, the Department of Environmental Conservation OKs eating one Hoosic brown trout per month. A catch and release regulation is in effect for all species of fish from the Schaghticoke Dam in New York to the Hudson River. Anyone who chooses to eat the fish upriver might consider trimming off all the fatty parts first, however, since PCBs collect in fatty tissues.
Trout season opens in New York and Massachusetts on April 1 and in Vermont on April 10. Bass season in New York opens in late June. But why wait to cast your bait? Ice fishing is allowed by permit from the city of Troy on Tomhannock Reservoir now through March 15. And anyone with a Massachusetts license can fish Hoosac Lake (Cheshire Reservoir) anytime. The ice measured more than 2 feet thick on Sunday.
Thinking ahead to warmer times, anglers unfamiliar with the pleasures of the Hoosic’s various tributaries and the main stem can get a toe wet during free fishing days, when no license is required to cast a line. Massachusetts will hold its free fishing weekend on June 5 and 6; Vermont’s free fishing day is June 12. New York will welcome anglers on the last full weekend in June.
One thing is certain: The fish are there, in all their sizes and varieties.
CONTEST DETAILS: The Hoosic Moments writing contest, sponsored by the Massachusetts Environmental Trust, Hoosic River Watershed Association, The Advocate and Inkberry, seeks submissions from students in two categories: Creative Nonfiction and Poetry. Over $600 in cash and prizes will be distributed in the junior (grades seven to nine) and senior (grades 10 to 12) age groups, and winners will be invited to read their work at a public event this spring. Writing submissions are due by March 1. For complete contest rules, e-mail hoorwa@berkshire.net, visit www.hoorwa.org or call 413-458-2742.
If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.
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Lanesborough Town Meeting to Vote Budget, Bylaws & Vehicle Purchases
By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
LANESBOROUGH, Mass. — Tuesday's annual town meeting includes a $14 million operating budget, new short-term rentals, accessory dwelling units and sign bylaws, and free cash article appropriations.
Voters will gather at Lanesborough Elementary School on June 9 at 6 p.m. to decide on 20 warrant articles.
The fiscal 2027 budget is up a little over 10 percent. Some of the main increases are the Mount Greylock Regional School District and McCann Technical School: the McCann assessment is up more than 30 percent based on factors including enrollment and the school renovation project, and Mount Greylock's is up 11 percent.
Article 11 is for the town to vote to approve from free cash the sum of $16,298.48 for the McCann Technical School roof and window replacement project so as not to impact the budget. Article 3 is appropriate $7,586,284 for Mount Greylock Regional School assessment.
Another notable increase was in life and health insurance, showing an increase of about 26 percent.
Ambulance Director Jen Weber is planning 24-hour coverage, which means more staff and a hike in her budget. One of the articles asks the town to appropriate $234,100 to operate the Ambulance Enterprise Fund for salaries and expenses.
Many town departments are looking for new vehicles. The Fire Department is looking to replace its outdated 1996 fire engine. There are two articles related to the truck at a total of $813,366. Article 12 would transfer $225,000 from free cash into the Fire Truck Stabilization Fund; Article 13 would transfer $605,000 from the fund and authorize the borrowing of $208,366.08.
The total includes a $100,000 contingency cost to cover any additional costs if a 2026 model-year chassis cannot be secured before new emissions standards go into effect in 2027.
The board at its last meeting moved the $225,000 transfer to come before the borrowing article, changing the stabilization number. If the $225,000 is not voted on, then they will amend the next article's number on the floor, subtracting the $225,000. This shows the borrowing number significantly lower.
Article 17 asks for the transfer of $80,000 from free cash to replace a police cruiser.
Police Chief Rob Derksen's aim is to replace one vehicle every other year, meaning the oldest vehicle gets replaced about every 10 years.
He stressed that if delayed this year, the town may have to double up in a future year to get back on schedule, and that paying later usually costs more. The article will ask for $80,000 from free cash, the vehicles used to be funded by the BHRD.
Lastly, the Highway Department is looking to replace a 2014 International dump truck that will be a total of $330,000 and will take two to three years to receive.
Money will be used from last year's approval of $250,000 from free cash for the replacement of a 2012 highway front-end loader that was underspent $49,261. Town meeting is being asked to approve a transfer of $53,274.85 from free cash and the use of $227,464 from funds from the Sale of Town Real Estate to fund the balance.
Other free cash proposals include $1,200 to purchase software to support tracking and ongoing maintenance schedules of town-owned vehicles; $42,000 for the replacement of the Highway Department's storage shed roof, $200,000 to reduce the tax levy.
Cassidy Flynn scattered five hits in a complete-game effort in the circle as Lenox upset top-seeded Hoosac Valley, 3-2, in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament. click for more
Brayden Durant struck out seven and walked one in a complete-game effort on the mound Saturday to pitch the Drury baseball team to a 6-0 win over Keefe Tech in the quarter-finals of the Division 5 State Tournament at Joe Wolfe Field. click for more
Jason Codey struck out 13, walked two and allowed just an infield single as the Generals earned a 7-1 win over Wahconah to claim their third straight regional title. click for more
Gracelyn Wright struck out eight, and Genevieve Lagess went 3-for-5 with four runs batted in as the Hurricanes beat Monson, 17-3, to claim their first Western Mass title in four years. click for more
For the boys, Ward Bianchi helped lead the way with a win in the shot put and a second place in the javelin as the Mounties finished 16 points ahead of runner-up Pittsfield (pending the results of the pole vault, which were unavailable at 11 p.m. Friday night). click for more
