Record Journal 4/9/06

• First and foremost in most folk’s minds is where do I want to go on opening day? The choices are many, and the odds of you catching a trout or two are the best they will ever be on opening day.
• Locally, Black Pond on the Meriden/Middlefield town line will see some heavy action especially from the cartop boat crew. If you are going to any body of water and plan on launching your boat, plan on getting there early, especially if you want to be on the water for the 6 a.m. opening and Black Pond is no exception. Besides its regular trout stocking, earlier in the year Black Pond received a stocking of some lunker Seeforellen brown trout and these babies are quite large.
• I would also look for better than average fishing at Baldwin’s Pond on the corner of North Wall street and Westfield Road simply because of an added stocking provided by the Meriden Lions Club. I am assuming that the DEP will also have stocked Baldwin’s for the opening day. Baldwin’s Pond, while a tad on the shallow side does offer unlimited fishing from the shoreline that is a boon for anyone taking some kids fishing.
• And don’t forget the Trout Parks like Wharton Brook and Chatfield Hollow. The only thing about the Trout Parks is that they carry with them a two fish and out limit. This means that you catch your two trout and move on. The Trout Parks have proven to be very successful over the last couple of years, however there are still a few who abuse the privilege it provides.
• Trout Parks were set up to provide a better chance for fishermen who aren’t that adept at trout fishing or fishermen who simply want to catch a couple of trout to bring home and eat. But, unfortunately, we still have the fish hogs that think that more is better and feel that it is their right to hook as many trout as they can before they decide to call it quits. When they are bait fishing this practice often results in the trout they release that have ingested a hook coming to the surface later and dying. Best bets for the Trout Parks are spinning lures, power bait, mealworms and small shiners. Use a small weight for the power bait, and a small float and hook for the mealworms
• Another local hot spot will be the Quinnipiac River, which has already been stocked by the DEP and will receive a couple of additional stockings priorb to next Saturday’s opening of the trout season. The first trout stocking will take place on the upper Quinnipiac River from Red Bridge on Oregon Road up to the pool above Carpenter’s Dam on the Cheshire town line.
• Quinnipiac River Watershed Association (QRWA) member Pete Picone is in charge of this particular stocking that will see trout stoked along the entire Quinnipiac Gorge corridor. It will be a bucket stocking and trout fishermen and their children are invited to help with the stocking. Those wanting to see the trout being stocked or want to help should meet at Red Bridge at 5 p.m. on Tuesday. Yes, I said Tuesday even though we previously did the stocking on a Wednesday, this year the date has been changed to Tuesday.
• There will be a second stocking of the Quinnipiac River on Thursday by QRWA member Ben Bryda. Those wanting to help stock should meet at the parking lot of the Westbrook Lobster Restaurant at 5 p.m.
• Another popular spot for the opening day of trout season is Cedar Lake in Chester. Cedar Lake has a boat launch area and over the years has been quite popular for area fishermen. Also in the same area is Pattaconk Lake located just up the road from the Cedar Lake boat launch. This is a carry-in boar access lake and a cartop or canoe is best suited for fishing Pattaconk.
• Higganum Reservoir is once again fishable, but it is not the easiest place to put in a cartop boat. At one time it was my favorite spot for opening day, but I now fish the Quinnipiac River because of my involvement with the QRWA. I haven’t fished the Higganum Reservoir since it was reopened, but it its anything like it used to be, this could be a sleeper for your opening day of trout season. If anyone does fish the Higganum, give me a call and let me know how you did.
• Many fishermen like to hit some of the larger impoundments for opening day and one of the more favorite spots is one of my old favorites, Gardner Lake down in the Salem area. However it seems to me that the trout fishing has tailed off a bit at Gardner Lake over the years, it still does have some nice bass and walleye. Its 529-acre size does make for some room to find your trout however and it also has the ability to yield some nice panfish in the way of yellow perch, calico bass, brown bullhead, bluegill and chain pickerel. Bass fishermen like the idea that they can catch both largemouth and smallmouth bass in Gardner Lake.
• And let’s not forget the Coginchaug River for some opening day trout fishing. Located in Middlefield and Durham this little stream (I believe it is the only northward flowing stream in Connecticut) has the ability to provide some really great trout fishing. I almost always use a small metal lure while fishing the Coginchaug like a phoebe or small kastmaster, but many of the others like Mepps spinners will work well there also. However-be prepared to lose some lures in the brush and underwater snags. Of course this also rings true if you are fishing the Quinnipiac River also.
• At one time, the Fireplace Hole on the Salmon River above the covered bridge was always an opening day meeting place for many area fly fishermen. It was almost like a yearly reunion with all of the participants seeing who could provide the best gourmet treats for the opening day crowd to feast on, with such delicacies as smoked salmon, wild goose and pheasant heading up the menu. Of course those were only the appetizers with a full array of wild game meats put on the grills during the course of the morning.
• Sad to say (in a way) with the new catch and release regulations and the fly fishermen having all the time they need to catch and release trout right up to opening day, opening day on this particular part of the Salmon River has seemingly lost its luster.
• If you are out that way though, don’t forget to give Day Pond a try. This little (7.4 acre) pond does yield some nice stocked trout put in there by the DEP and this is a pond that is fished from the shore early. It does feature some pond side picnic tables and if the weather is good, it’s a nice place to bring the kids.
• Local bait & tackle shops open: Look for your favorite local bait & tackle shops to be burning the midnight oil Friday to better serve their customers. Some will have coffee and donuts or cookies available and some of them will be running a trout contest of some type. They are: D&J Bait & Tackle on Old Colony Road in Meriden (203)-630-1337; Uncle B’s Bait and Tackle on 968 No. Colony in Wallingford (203)-294-1180 and last but by no means least, Fishin’ Factory on 1426 Meriden/Waterbury Road (Rt. 322) in Southington (860) 621-8145.
• Well gang, gotta run and get my gear together. See ya’ at the Q River trout stocking at Red Bridge April 11 at 5 p.m. God Bless America and watch over our troops. Trout season set to open on Saturday [org pub Record Journal, written by Mike Roberts 4/9/06]