Matthew Dickerson, Reprinted from the Addison Independent, April 20, 2000.
There are several popular images of angling. One is the pipe-smoking fly-caster standing thigh deep in wide pool casting all day to the same big fish, working toward the perfect presentation of just the right fly. Now there are a handful of trout streams in Vermont that boast a healthy population of big picky trout--rivers where only only a single bait-choice will work at any given time, and where the presentation must be perfect. But only a handful. Most of Vermont's trout--especially brook trout, and most especially any hatchery fish--are eager to take any reasonable offering. And though it is possible to scare a hatchery trout if you cast a shadow directly over it, or throw rocks at it, etc., most stocked fish don't spook all that easily. In fact, although I (like most anglers) would like to pride myself on my well-cultivated ability to lure a wily trout onto my hook, it's actually not that difficult. The smaller the stream, the more true this is.
In rivers like the Middlebury or New Haven, I've found that if I can find a feeding trout it will take just about anything. So what's the challenge of trout fishing? In Vermont the challenge is often finding the fish in the first place. Unlike some western rivers that boast trout populations measured in the thousands per mile, Vermont has few rivers that are even in the high hundreds. The exception, of course, is late April and May right after the state stocking trucks have done their thing. That's when our trout are most populous, hungriest, and most difficult to frighten.
With that in mind, here is my annual update of the stocking schedule for local waters. As usual, the Middlebury and New Haven rivers should receive a healthy number of fish. The upper stretches are scheduled for a total of 1600 and 800 brook trout respectively with another 600 going into Baldwin Creek. The lower portion of the Middlebury will receive about 400 browns and 500 rainbows. The New Haven makes up for a smaller number of brookies by receiving 2000 each of browns and rainbows. A secret to some, Otter Creek also gets about 500 browns and rainbows right in downtown Middlebury. Lewis Creek is also stocked with brookies and browns. Furnace Brook gets a few brook trout to add to some healthy resident browns that move up out of Otter Creek. If you want to travel east, Mad River is stocked heavily. Most of the stocked fish go in between 8" and 12" long.
If you desire a bigger quarry, the state also has a "trophy stocking program". These are rainbows that go in at about 15" and browns at 13". Though I wouldn't call a 13" fish a "trophy", it still feels nice on the end of the line. The upper Otter Creek down south in Danby and Mt. Tabor is scheduled for 1000 of these fish in late April and early May, as are the bigger Winooski and Lamoille rivers up north.
If you prefer flat water, Goshen Dam gets an annual infusion of 1800 brookies. Silver Lake is scheduled for 1000 brookies plus 500 browns, but it's tougher to fish from the shore. The gravel road up to Goshen Dam usually opens by Memorial day and anglers can reach deep water by casting right off the dam--though it does get crowded. The dates and times of the stockings vary from river to river based on water conditions. Just keep an eye for the trucks moving slowly along the river (or check out my next few columns).