N.H. Weekly Fishing Report -- September 21, 2006

With the official beginning of fall tomorrow (9/22), it's time to think about the fishing opportunities that remain to us this season, and get out there to enjoy fishing in the crisp air! Today, fall-stocking news from Bob Fawcett, our hatcheries supervisor; brood stock Atlantic salmon tips from anadromous fisheries biologist Jon Greenwood; and a terrible teddy-bear tale from Milford hatchery.

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Fall Trout Stocking
By Robert S. Fawcett, Hatchery Supervisor

Twenty-six (26) lakes and ponds are set to be stocked with trout in September or October. That will be around 6,237 rainbow trout "almost yearlings" (8 or 9-inchers) and 4,993 two-year-olds (11 to 14-inchers), 2,820 eastern brook trout (EBT) yearlings, 3,960 EBT Kennebago-strain fall fingerlings (3 or 4-inchers), 973 tiger trout (10+ inchers) and 250 brown trout (13+ inchers).

Waterbodies managed with fall stocking (alphabetical by town):

Tiger trout are stocked in Lucas and Willard ponds, and Laurel Lake also receives brown trout.

Fish are stocked in the fall for a variety of reasons, though most are intended to "recruit" into the winter ice fishery. The tiger trout take longer to reach a larger size at time of stocking for better survival and a more pleasing size fish for the angler. They are very difficult to raise successfully, because they are a cross between two different genuses, and have poor initial survival in the hatchery. Those few that do survive have the potential to make up for that in growth to a trophy size with time.

In terms of research, fall stocking can help the regional biologists answer questions about subsequent performance of the fish after they are stocked. They mark the fish and then perform creel surveys to figure out what percentage of what fish are caught through the ice. Gabe Gries at Fish and Game's Region 4 office in Keene (603-352-9669) can tell you that 87% of the fish caught last winter at Laurel Lake in Fitzwilliam were from spring stocking and 13% were from fall stocking. Some of those facts can be useful in making management decisions.

Mostly, the fall stocking is simply to make sure you have the opportunity to catch some trout this winter. It represents a change from years ago when any trout caught in the winter ice fishery were just hold-overs from spring stocking, and no special effort was made for the ice angler.

Many anglers look forward to ice fishing for trout, in waters that remain open to the taking of trout year round. Make sure and check the Fishing Digest for which ones remain open, or click:

• Lakes and ponds managed for trout without a closed season
• Rivers and streams managed for trout without a closed season
   

Fall Fishing for Brood Stock Salmon Starts Soon
By Jon Greenwood, Coordinator, Merrimack River Anadromous Fish Restoration Program

If you're looking for some challenging catch-and-release sport fishing while you're out enjoying the beautiful fall weather, head to the Merrimack and Pemigewasset rivers to hook the "King of Fish" -- Atlantic salmon. Fisheries statistics tell us that the success rate for catching salmon is higher in the fall than in the spring season, thanks to better wading conditions and cooler temperatures.

This fall, Fish and Game will stock the Merrimack and Pemigewasset rivers with salmon -- about 700 brood stock Atlantic salmon averaging 2 pounds each. You might also hook into some of the brood stock salmon stocked last spring. Expect some great fishing by the first week in October. Note that the brood stock Atlantic salmon season runs year-round, but all salmon caught from October 1 through March 31 must be released immediately.

Brood stock anglers need a New Hampshire fishing license and an $11 Atlantic salmon permit; both can be purchased online (click here), or from license agents statewide. All proceeds from salmon stamp permits help support the Merrimack River Anadromous Fish Restoration Program, created in 1993 by Fish and Game in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to help restore migratory fish populations to the Merrimack River watershed.

Fly Fishing for Salmon
The brood stock salmon released in the Merrimack give New Hampshire anglers an exciting recreational fishing opportunity. This fall, the fish will be stocked only in the Franklin-Bristol area. The first good spots to are below the Ayers Island Dam in Bristol along the Coolidge Woods Road, the Profile Falls Recreation Area (the access site near the Smith River confluence) and below the Eastman Falls Dam in Franklin. Because salmon are migratory, anglers should also try fishing downstream as the season progresses: in the Stirrup Iron Brook area (Boscawen), the Contoocook River in Penacook, at Sewall's Falls Recreational Park in Concord and below the Garvins Falls Dam in Bow and the Hooksett Dam. Click here for more information and an access map.

Fly anglers can use traditional salmon flies or trout streamers such as Grey Ghosts, Mickey Finns or any patterns that imitate small baitfish. Fly casters pursuing broodstock salmon this fall should consider using lighter, 5- to 7-weight rods with floating or sink tip lines, depending on river flow conditions, so they can experience the feel of the fight. Some recommended flies include traditional hair wing flies and streamers. Some patterns to try are green highlander, black bear green butt, cosseboom, soft hackle marabou and muddler minnow. Fishing nymphs has also proven successful.

Spin Fishing Anglers
As the season progresses, spin casters should try the area from the town of Bow to the Massachusetts/New Hampshire border, which is open to both fly and spin fishing. The best areas include the section of the river just below the Garvin's Falls Dam in Bow, and below the Hooksett Dam, where the river is fast flowing. Fishing success in these two areas is best angling from a boat. Excellent boat access is provided at Public Service of New Hampshire's ramp on the west side of the river in Bow and at the state-owned ramp on the east side of the river below the Hooksett Dam.

Spin-casting anglers would do best to use medium 6 and a half to 7-foot rods. Recommended lures include: Little Cleo (chrome, chartreuse colors), Blue Fox Pixie, Trixie (silver, chartreuse), Rapala's CD model, and large in line spinners such as Mepps Aglia (nickel, green, yellow) and rooster tails. Remember that the use of lures for the taking salmon is by the use of an artificial lure having no more than ONE hook point! A solution for lures sold with treble hooks is to either cut off two of the hook points or replace the treble hook with a #6 bait holder hook.

Record your success
Brood stock salmon anglers can help the program by reporting their catch to Fish and Game; fishing diaries submitted by January 15, 2007, are eligible for a prize drawing. Last year's three winners took home a salmon fly rod, a salmon fly reel (both donated by Kittery Trading Post) and a framed Atlantic salmon print from Fish and Game.

So get out and enjoy New Hampshire's fall colors and great fall fishing!
 

TEDDY BEAR KILLS FISH!
By Robert S. Fawcett, Hatchery Supervisor

On Wednesday, September 6, 2006, a TEDDY BEAR released by person or persons unknown stopped the flow of water to a circular pool at Milford Hatchery, killing 2,500 rainbow trout. WATER FLOW in hatcheries IS LIFE SUPPORT TO THE FISH! Stop that flow, which delivers the dissolved oxygen required for fish respiration, and the fish suffocate and die. RELEASE OF ANY TEDDY BEARS into fish hatchery water IS NOT PERMITTED. Please think before you act. If a teddy bear is dropped accidentally, find a fish culturist and tell them quickly, so they might save your teddy bear, and keep it from becoming a killer. Thank you.
 

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