Fishing Area 2 — Gate 31

Quabbin Fishing Area 2 is Boat Launch Area #2 at Gate 31, the Robert D. Wetmore Fishing Area, in New Salem off Route 122, just south of the intersection with Route 202. DCR says it offers a great variety of warm-water fish as well as trout and salmon. Boats launch and rent here during the Quabbin Fishing Season, and DCR's photos show shore access beside the ramps. Parking is $6 a car.

By DCR's coordinates, Area 2 is the northernmost of the three launch areas, roughly 17 miles north of Quabbin Park Cemetery on Route 9 in a straight line.

Getting to Gate 31

DCR places the launch area in New Salem, off Route 122 just south of where it meets Route 202, at coordinates 42.5236, -72.2874. From the south, Route 202 runs up the west side of the reservoir past Gate 8. Watch the gate numbers: the Gate 30 parking area, also off Route 122 in New Salem, and all access through it have been closed since July 10, 2021, because DCR engineers found the keystone bridge and road just inside it unsafe. DCR recommends Gate 29 on Route 202 for reaching that section instead.

What's at Fishing Area 2

• Two launch ramps, shore access and a parking lot, shown in DCR's photos of Gate 31.
• DCR rental boats, first come, first served (see boat rentals).
• O'Loughlin Pond, the regulating pond above the Horseshoe Dam, where DCR has rented canoes, kayaks and jon boats in past seasons and allows private jon boats with a Quabbin Boat Seal.

O'Loughlin Pond Is Closed to Boats in 2026

O'Loughlin Pond in New Salem is closed to all boating, private and rental, for the 2026 season while DCR surveys and hand-removes swollen bladderwort, an invasive floating plant that boat props and paddles can spread. There were no canoe or kayak rentals at Area 2 this year for that reason. The main reservoir launch stays open in season.

Fishing From Area 2

DCR's fishing guide says Gate 31 and Gate 43 reach shallower water that suits warm-water fish, while the main reservoir still holds trout and salmon. Expect smallmouth and largemouth bass, chain pickerel, yellow and white perch, crappie and bullhead, with lake trout and salmon possible in spring near the surface. Limits and license rules are on the fishing guide.

Gate 31 is one of the six gates where DCR allows pedestrian night fishing during the season with its online Night Access Permit, and the shoreline here is inside the Gates 22 to 44 stretch open to daylight shore fishing.

Biking and Walking Nearby

DCR allows bicycles on designated roads through Gates 29, 30, 31 and 35, so Area 2 sits in the main biking zone on the north end. Walking is allowed through any open gate from one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset. See gates and biking and the hiking guide for walks from Gates 29 and 35.

Questions about the launch area or a windy-day closure: Quabbin Visitor Center, (413) 323-7221.