The cooperative nursery supplies approximately 1 million trout to Pa. fishermen
Don Anderson, commissioner of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and a volunteer nursery manager, talks about how sportsmen manage trout.
Brian Whipkey, Erie Times-News
As trout season begins across Pennsylvania, anglers look forward to catching fish and experts offer advice on what baits and lures work best.
Avery Keith, 6, of Somerset, caught his first trout during the Mentored Youth Trout Day on March 30 and is looking forward to fishing the opening day weekend.
“It’s fun,” he said of watching the rainbow trout take his bait and start pulling the line.
He was fishing with his family in Fairhope, Somerset County. They didn’t get a chance to measure the fish because they quickly put it back in the water for someone to catch another day.
“It came crashing down and we picked him up and quickly took pictures and put him back in the water,” said his mother, Meagan.
He uses butterworms for bait and his cousins have caught fish with them as well. Avery also fishes with his father, Justin, and brother Camden, 9.
“We had a lot of fun, we try to do it every year with the kids,” his mother said. The family went out Friday for fishing camp in a cabin and then went fishing in the morning.
He says live bait like fishworms, meal and butterworms work well for kids learning to fish. “Butterworms seem to work best that day,” he said. They also used spinners and pink PowerBait.
Avery said he enjoys fishing and spending time with all family members.
“I’m looking forward to having fun and catching fish,” he said of going again.
The statewide trout season runs April 6-Sept. 2, where anglers can keep five trout a day that are at least seven inches long.
There are many options for those who want to fish with a spinning rod or fly rod.
Advice for your tackle box
In northwestern Pennsylvania, Dominic Ferrante, a salesman at Poor Richard’s Bait and Tackle, Fairview in Erie County, has a variety of bait options that work well for stocked trout.
For those using bait, he suggests minnows.
“Emerald shiners are the best. We have different types but Emerald shiners are the best,” he said.
Other baits that have proven themselves include waxworms and mealworms.
“Live bait is the biggest thing we sell for the first day of trout,” he said. “Live bait is the way to go.”
Are you ready?: A look at what you need to know to fish for trout this spring across Pennsylvania
In eastern Pennsylvania, Mike Schwartz, firearms and assistant fishing manager of Dunkelberger’s Sports Outfitter, also said live bait is a good choice.
“The popular bait is still mealworms, red worms, night crawlers, fatheads (minnows) is also very popular. PowerBait is one of the biggest sellers here and salmon eggs.”
Regarding PowerBait and eggs, Schwartz said yellow and orange have been popular choices for targeted stocked trout. “For some reason the scent of garlic seems to work as well,” he says.
The company has locations in Stroudsburg and Brodheadsville in Monroe County. He says smaller spinners are also popular.
Ferrante also recommends small spinners like Rooster Tails or spoons like the Kastmaster or Little Cleo that imitate minnows.
“For stocked trout I go smaller,” he said of choosing a lure size for fish that average 10 to 11 inches in length. “I will not exaggerate. They might be shy or scared.”
For fly rod users, Ferrante says to use designs that mimic minnows or fish eggs.
“The stone fly I believe just hatched. Stoneflies are good to go now,” he said.
Schwartz also likes to catch trout with a fly rod.
“Nymphs, streamers, woolly buggers are good for fishing early in the season,” he said. “If there are no hatches in the water, go with a woolly bugger or a streamer. A streamer is a fly fisherman’s spinner,” he said because it imitates a minnow. “Blacknosed Dace, Micky finns, they’re all really good streamers for this part of the country.”
Something relatively new that is attracting anglers is a product called Trout Magnet.
“It’s really hot. It’s a really small 1/32 ounce jig with a small rubber grub on the back. It’s not really new but people don’t know about it and it’s something to try,” Schwartz said.
You can use the rubber split tails that come with the kit, but some anglers also put live bait like wax worms on the hooks.
Color options based on water clarity
Fluctuations in water levels are common during April showers and anglers need to be able to adjust to the different conditions.
“If the creeks are high, the lakes are the best bet until it calms down,” Ferrante said.
If you decide to fish a stream when the water is cloudy or high, he says a deeper handle will attract and hold fish.
“In the current, your bait will just fly the fish,” he says of avoiding faster water.
“I make clear water more brilliant like silver and gold, something that shines in the light. When it’s darker, I’ll do chartreuse or pink, anything brighter, UV, glow in the dark,” he said. “Trout and steelhead have good vision, so they can see them pretty well.”
Darker lures, like blacks and browns, work in different conditions.
“The black jigs are always going. I would say that anytime, sunny or cloudy,” said Ferrante.
Schwartz said anglers should change their lure colors based on water clarity.
“If the water is dark, the fish will be black. If the water is light, the fish will be light. It’s the opposite of what you might think,” Schwartz said. “A shiny lure in dirty water will be more attractive, but it’s not. If you fish a copper blade spinner in dark water, you will do better. Silver for the clear, dark for the dirty is a simple thing to remember.”
The key is being prepared to change colors and lures if the fish aren’t biting on what you have there.
“Try a little bit of everything. When something works, stick with it,” Schwartz says.
More: Angler researches lowering lakes from bottom to cold water and helps trout survive
New fishing line
There are many types of fishing rods available for spinning rods, including monofilament and fluorocarbon
Ferrante said for stocked trout monofilament line from four to eight kilo test is a good choice.
“They are small fish. I wouldn’t go bigger than eight pounds,” he said.
Fluorocarbon lines are clear in the water but are more expensive than monofilament and they tend to tangle more easily. To give anglers the best of both worlds, he recommends filling your spool with monofilament and then using a few feet of fluorocarbon leader on the end of the line to connect your lure or bait.
“It’s a matter of preference,” he said of the various options available.
How many trout are there in Pennsylvania?
About 4 million trout are being stocked in waterways across the state this spring by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and sportsmen’s groups that operate cooperative nurseries.
PFBC plans to release 2.4 million rainbow trout; 702,000 brown trout, 132,000 brook trout and 14,000 golden rainbow trout. As with the previous exercise, the average size trout produced for the stocking was 11 inches long with an average weight of .58 pounds.
In addition to the trout raised in state fish hatcheries, PFBC cooperative nurseries operated by sportsmen’s clubs and other groups throughout the state will add another one million trout to the open waters. to public angling throughout the year.
The PFBC stocks trout in 697 streams and 129 lakes statewide for anglers to enjoy.
Who needs a license to fish in Pennsylvania?
Anglers 16 years of age or older must have a valid Pennsylvania fishing license. The cost for a resident fishing license is $27.97 and a trout permit is $14.97.
Fishing licenses and permits can be purchased through the HuntFishPA online portal on the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) website (Fishandboat.com), on your smartphone using the FishBoatPA mobile app, or by visiting one of the nearly 700 retail license issuing agents such as sporting goods stores and county treasurer’s offices.
Dates to remember
There are some important dates for trout anglers this year:
- April 6 — Trout Season Statewide Opening Day at 8 a.m., creel limit of five trout at least seven inches long.
- May 26 and July 4 are two Fish for Free Days when no license is required to fish on public waterways.
- September 3 — Extended trout season begins with a creel limit of three.
- November April 1 to 30 — Mandatory Life Jacket Required for boats under 16 feet in length, canoes, kayaks and paddleboards.
Catch and release
If you don’t want to keep your fish, the commission offers the following advice to give your catch the best chance for survival:
- Use barbless hooks.
- Play fish fast.
- Try to land your fish as quickly as possible, don’t play the fish to exhaustion, and use a landing net.
- Keep the fish in the water. A fish’s chance of injury increases the longer it is out of the water.
- Wet your hands, nets and other materials that may come into contact with fish.
- Hold the fish upside down while removing the hook. This will often calm the fish and reduce handling time.
- Remove the hooks quickly. Hemostats or long-nose pliers are essential tools for quickly removing hooks.
- Cut the line. When it is not possible to remove the hook without hurting the fish, cut the line.
- Do not touch the gills. Do not touch the fish by placing your fingers in the gill slits.
- Hold the fish upright underwater after removing the hook and let it swim away under its own power. If necessary, hold the fish out of the current until it revives.
Brian Whipkey is the outdoors columnist for USA TODAY Network sites in Pennsylvania. Contact him at [email protected] and sign up for our weekly Go Outdoors PA email newsletter on the homepage of this website under your login name. Follow him on Facebook @whipkeyoutdoorsand Instagram on whipkeyoutdoors.
