| TROUT SEASON OPENS SATURDAY,
APRIL 8
(06/22) TRENTON -- Department of Environmental
Protection Commissioner Lisa P. Jackson today encouraged New Jersey
residents to celebrate the official start of trout season on Saturday,
April 8, at 8 a.m.
"New Jersey's streams, ponds and lakes are teeming with trout,
and with more places to catch them than ever before, angling enthusiasts
have every reason to expect an outstanding season," Commissioner
Jackson said.
For opening day weekend alone, the DEP's Division of Fish and Wildlife
has stocked New Jersey's fresh waters with 186,000 fish, including
nearly 14,000 more allocated to 16 major trout waters.
By the time spring stocking wraps up at the end of May, upward
of 570,000 brook, brown and rainbow trout will have been released
in nearly 200 publicly accessible waterways throughout New Jersey.
The DEP this year added six new waters to its trout stocking program:
Heritage Pond in Absecon, Atlantic County; Pemberton Lake in Pemberton,
Burlington County; Gloucester City Pond in Gloucester, Camden County;
Hamilton Fire Pond in Neptune and Echo Lake in Southard, Monmouth
County; and Potash Lake in Oakland, Passaic County.
For anglers hoping to hook a trophy specimen, Fish and Wildlife's
Bonus Broodstock program returns for its third consecutive year.
Before opening day, nine selected waterbodies receive three to five
times their share of large breeders, each ranging from 14 inches
to 19 inches and weighing 3 pounds to 5 pounds. Those waterbodies
are: Crystal Lake, Burlington County; Echo Lake and Hamilton Fire
Pond, Monmouth County; Heritage Pond, Atlantic County; Milton Lake,
Union County; Mount Hope Pond, Morris County; Rowands Pond, Camden
County; Schadlers Sand Wash Pond, Cumberland County; and Whites
Pond in Bergen County. During the first few weeks of spring stocking,
up to 6,000 breeders will be distributed in other waters throughout
the state.
Trout stocking also will continue in Lake Hopatcong. The state's
largest lake will receive large broodstock and a higher percentage
of brown trout than in previous years.
Anglers interested in catching wild trout can try their luck in
35 of New Jersey's 175 streams with naturally reproducing trout
populations. Sections of these streams are privately owned, however,
and anglers wishing to access those areas must have the landowner's
permission.
New Jersey's 2006 trout season also features the introduction of
landlocked (Atlantic) salmon in May and the stocking of only 14-inch
to 16-inch, two-year-old trout during the fall.
Check the New Jersey Fish & Wildlife Digest, 2006 Freshwater
Fishing Issue, for information on fishing specific waters and related
regulations. For other details on trout fishing in New Jersey, newly
added fishing access information and weekly stocking schedules,
visit www.njfishandwildlife.com. Call the Trout Hotline at (609)
633-6765 for weekly updates on waters slated for spring stocking.
Anglers between the ages of 16 and 70 must purchase a license before
fishing New Jersey's fresh waters. Trout fishing also requires the
separate purchase of a trout stamp. Fishing licenses and trout stamps
can be purchased online, at select Fish and Wildlife offices and
at license vendors throughout the state.
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