He People have been fishing the waters that are now the Wachusett Reservoir since this land was the Wampanoag nation. Today, fishing is allowed from one hour before sunrise to an hour after sunset, and only from gates six to 16 on Route 70, gates 17 to 29 along Route 140, gates 25 to 35 along Routes 12/110, and of course, Thomas Basin in West Boylston.

The reservoir can hold 65 billion gallons of water, and these days folks say it holds a lot fewer fish than ever before. There are still some large and smallmouth bass, bluegills, lake and rainbow trout, white perch and kivvers.

On a recent trip to the shores, I spoke with a man named Bob (who asked that I use just his first name). He blames the reduced catch on the fact that the brooks which drain into the reservoir and the shoreline itself aren't kept as clean as they used to be. This gives the fish fewer places to lay eggs. Areas of the shoreline that used to be cleared by the State are now grown in, leaving fishermen fewer places to cast from.

He also noticed fewer fish since the state introduced salmon to the reservoir.

That day, he'd been more then five hours and caught nothing and is sure that decades ago, he'd be grousing about the one that got away.

"Thirty, forty years ago, you'd catch bass and have your limit within three hours!" he said. "You'd let bass go just to catch bigger ones. Now, you'll see little fish along the shore, but years ago you'd see schools of 30 or 40. You don't see that anymore."

Bob said the current year has been the worst he can remember.

"I caught the biggest smallmouth bass in '72; it was six pounds," he said. "I haven't heard of one that big in years. My uncle, who lives on Route 110, used to get bass out of here that were 10 pounds and more. Today, if you catch one over three pounds, you're doing good."

Some things to remember while fishing for the big one:

The Mass. Dept. of Fishery and Wildlife has some rules and regulations when fishing and hunting on state property:

No person shall possess any alcoholic beverage except under permit or dump or discard any can, bottle or rubbish.

No person shall remove vegetation, soil or stones from any WMA except under permit.

No person shall use excessive speed in driving a vehicle.

No person, unless under permit, shall drive or possess any vehicle except on roads or trails maintained for public traffic.

No person shall deface or tamper with any sign, building or equipment.

No person shall build or maintain a fire without written permission from the Director of the Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MDFW) or his designee.

No person shall camp within any WMA without written permission from the Director of the MDFW or his designee.

No person shall engage in target practicing without written permission from the Director of the MDFW or his designee.

No person, except under permit, shall dig or disturb any artifact or archaeological remains.

Information courtesy the MassWildlife Web site, http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/dfwwma.htm.