A recent article of mine extolled the merits of delayed harvest and catch and release regulations. I hope that many of you are considering the benefits offered by them. A few more pertinent details are outlined below showing the availabilities and opportunities.
Resources
In order to take advantage of the many opportunities that these regulations offer, it is vital that you know when and where they occur. One of the easiest and best ways to find out what is available is to go online and seek out the areas and dates for these regulations to take effect in your state or the states where you plan to fish.
For example, I live in South Carolina, but my state has only a few miles of trout water. Most of my trout fishing is in North Carolina. When I go online to check the dates, ncwildlife.org/fishing/trout provides the dates as well as stocking dates in each county.
I take advantage of the delayed harvest regulations and catch a lot of stocked trout as well as the occasional nice holdover that has reached a significant size. There are wild trout in some of these streams as well, and they are a little more difficult to attract to the fly.
In addition to opening dates and stocking dates, most of these agencies provide maps to help fishermen to navigate to their desired destinations.
Tactics
As I mentioned in the previous article, the trout respond to the usual offerings. However, the stocked trout respond to the salmon egg patterns particularly well. As mentioned in an earlier article, “Triggers,” the addition of a red dot made with a permanent marker seems to increase the takes.
You will find that some of the best pools are farther away from the parking areas. Most anglers don’t particularly like to hike long distance in waders and the effort to reach the more distant locations is well worth the effort.
Even stocked trout can be wary. Try to keep a low profile and start with longer casts to keep disturbance to a minimum.
As you know, delayed harvest regulations mean that all fish caught must be returned to the water. This also provides the most sport for the greatest number of anglers.
Personal Observations
Some of my most memorable trips have been to delayed harvest waters. The temperature is brisk, and the water temperatures are usually ideal. As long as the water temperature is above 40ºF, the fish will be active and the cooler temperatures allow the fish to be less stressed when it is returned to the water. As a matter of fact, using forceps, you can often release the fish without removing it from the water.
October and November are great months for delayed harvest fishing, but don’t let the colder weather of late winter deter you. These days can often provide fond memories of time on the water.
