Print it. Bag it. Bring it.Phones die, screens crack, and most of this water has no signal. Print this map, fold it into a zip-top bag or dry bag with your license, and you have a backup your electronics can’t give you. Every marker is numbered so you can say exactly where you are.
| # | Point | Type | Lat, Lon | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Soldier Pond access Slipway at the Soldier Pond Road crossing | Access / boat ramp | 47.15618, -68.57380 | Unnamed slipway in OSM. |
| 2 | Soldier Pond Road Crossing at Soldier Pond | Bridge crossing | 47.15602, -68.57442 | |
| 3 | Fish River Falls Falls - also an MDIFW reach boundary | Dam / hazard | 47.20458, -68.58587 | The falls and the red markers above them divide two reaches listed in the MDIFW special fishing laws; the rules are not restated here. |
| 4 | Fort Kent Outdoor Center Nordic ski and biathlon center above Fort Kent | Park / conservation area | 47.23652, -68.59515 | |
| 5 | USGS gauge 01013500 - Fish River at Fort Kent Live stage and discharge | USGS gauge | 47.23750, -68.58278 | |
| 6 | Bridge Street Fort Kent crossing | Bridge crossing | 47.24310, -68.58048 | |
| 7 | Jalbert Park Riverside park, Fort Kent | Park / conservation area | 47.24657, -68.58032 | |
| 8 | Up North Outdoor store (S.W. Collins Co.), Fort Kent | Bait, tackle & fly shop | 47.25133, -68.59444 | |
| 9 | East Main Street US 1 / Route 161 crossing, Fort Kent | Bridge crossing | 47.25188, -68.59329 | |
| 10 | America's First Mile Northern terminus of U.S. Route 1 | Point of interest | 47.24868, -68.60239 | |
| 11 | Riverside Park Riverside park near the St. John confluence | Park / conservation area | 47.25561, -68.59304 | |
| 12 | Fort Kent riverfront slipway Hand-carry access near the St. John confluence | Access / boat ramp | 47.25557, -68.59490 | Unnamed slipway in OSM. |
Gauge: USGS 01013500 — Fish River near Fort Kent, Maine. Live flow on the web page.
Species: Brook Trout, Burbot, Chain Pickerel, Lake Trout, Landlocked Atlantic Salmon, Muskellunge, Smallmouth Bass
Regulations: www.maine.gov/ifw/fishing-boating/fishing/laws-rules.html
Emergency: call 911 and give the number of the nearest point on this map plus its coordinates.
Fort Kent - the gauge reach and the confluence with the St. John River.
Eagle Lake village - launch and road access to the middle of the chain.
Wallagrass - bridge crossings and bank access on the lower river.
Portage Lake - the upper end of the chain, with a public launch.
Soldier Pond - roadside access between Wallagrass and Fort Kent.
Route 161 crossings - the main road access along the length of the river.
St. Froid Lake - the upstream lake feeding the system, reached from Winterville.
Spring: heavy late snowmelt, with salmon fishing turning on as the water drops through May.
Summer: warm and thin in the lower river, with fish holding near lake outlets and cold tributaries.
Fall: the strongest stretch of the year as brook trout and salmon move ahead of the close.
Winter: ice fishing on the chain lakes rather than on the river itself.