Maine Coast Fishing Report: Stripers, Haddock, and Freshwater Bites on Fire

Artificial Lure here with your Friday, June 13th, 2025 Atlantic Maine fishing report. Sunrise hit at 4:58 a.m., and sunset’s coming at 8:23 p.m., so there’s plenty of light to fill your cooler before the day is done. High tide at Portland rolled in at 12:48 a.m. at just shy of 10 feet, low hits at 7:00 a.m., and the afternoon high is 12:40 p.m. If you’re looking for best action, work that outgoing tide into the morning and swing back for the afternoon push.

No big storms on the horizon—just the comfortable June pattern, with cool mornings giving way to mild afternoons. That means bug hatches are thick and the fish are on the feed. Water temps are perfect for a surge in striper activity, and the early summer bite is firing on all cylinders.

The headlines? Striper fishing is hot right up and down the midcoast, with fish in the 30- to 40-inch range showing in all the big rivers and out along the beaches. Saco River is seeing bass pounding herring schools, and outgoing tide by the mouth is prime time. Saco Bay has been giving up plenty of schoolies and some bigger cows, especially near the islands just off the beaches. Over in Kennebunk, clams and paddletails are working wonders along the riverbanks and marsh mouths.

For lures, bone SP Minnows and white soft plastic stickbaits are landing a lot of fish. DB Smelt-style plugs in silver-blue are killers, especially for those bigger, more aggressive bass following mackerel. If you want live bait, mackerel are now thick close to shore, and they’re top choice—drifting a live mack or chunking one off a beach will work well all day. Sabiki rigs in size 10-12 with a gold flash are your best bet for loading up on the macks. Fly anglers are seeing great results with red-and-gray Ghost streamer patterns.

Groundfishing is another bright spot. Haddock are hitting hard offshore—reports of fish in the 5 to 10-pound range, plus some quality redfish and cusk out on the deeper ledges.

If you want freshwater, lakes like Megunticook, Swan Lake, and Great Moose Lake are all fishing well for smallmouth bass this month. White perch action is peaking in the evenings—just toss a piece of nightcrawler under a float before sunset.

For hotspots, don’t skip:
- Saco River mouth (early outgoing tide for stripers)
- Casco Bay grass banks on the incoming for schoolie surface feeds
- Islands off Saco Bay for mackerel and big bass

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