Raritan Headwaters Association Stream Cleanup a Success

Raritan Headwaters Association held its 25th Annual Stream Cleanup today. Thirty three sites along the South Branch Raritan River, North Branch Raritan River, Raritan River and tributaries to these three great New Jersey waterways kept volunteers from throughout the region active for three hours this morning.

I volunteered at what was designated as Drake's Brook in Ledgewood, since I had never before visited the creek and wanted to have a look, shoot photos, and spot any wild trout as well as pick up trash. Copious volunteer turnout felt encouraging and hundreds of pounds of trash taken out leaves Canal Park in better condition. The area really appears clean and natural now.

Canal Park hosts remnant ditches once part of the Morris Canal. Back in the woods, I found stone structures which may have been part of the canal system, although Roxbury Township Historical Society hasn't marked them to give any wanderer certainty. Beautiful day to be in the woods and on a stream, the temperature climbed to about 70 before noon.

I did spot three wild trout, very sure rainbows. Each nine or 10 inches long, they scooted about together before dashing from view. Markings and fins distinguished them as trout, but before I could look closer, I couldn't get over feeling nonplussed that they were rainbows instead of browns. I searched other holes, but found no more. Water quality is not what I hoped for. Frankly, I felt surprise--and bliss--upon seeing the trout. The rocks have that ugly brown algae covering them, which indicates water purity that could be improved. Suds on the surface just below riffles indicates phosphorous in the water, I think. I've seen much purer stream water in New Jersey.

I hoped for better, but I was warned. I attended the Association's Stream Monitoring Conference this past December. From what I've gathered, the Canal Park area hosts Ledgewood Brook, which is renamed Drake's Brook just downstream. Ledgewood Brook currently has moderately impaired water quality and the suspicion centers on the dump in Roxbury Township, which has been a big news item as residents have been ill affected. The Association has plenty of evidence to suggest the stream should have much better water. The good news is that wherever the Association monitoring took place on Drake's Brook, the team provided evidence for a perfect score on water quality. I imagine the flow much further down has filtered out impurities a great deal.

Nevertheless, I can't imagine the water downstream of what I witnessed has the quality of, for example, the Dunnfield Creek in Warren County at the Delaware Water Gap. The Dunnfield is so well spring-fed that the deepest pools have a fresh, aquamarine coloration and perfect clarity. It could be embarrassing to confide the following, but it will really back up what I have to say about the Dunnfield's purity. An older friend told me back in the 1970's the Dunnfield's safe to drink. He demonstrated. I took his lead. By all the evidence, it seemed so. For years, I visited the stream trout fishing, hiking--and drinking from it, no purification tabs or boiling. I never have experienced any ill symptoms whatsoever and it tastes very clean. Then I became associated with professional naturalists and spilled the beans. They urged me never to do so again, but I might, though their concern is the possibility of an amoeba. It's clear the stream isn't safe to drink, though I think it's a wonder that a stream in New Jersey can be liberally imbibed with no ill effects, not that any guarantee against illness exists if I try again.

We once fished the Dunnfield many years ago on a trout Opening Day washout. Every stream in our purview raged muddy, and we sought a place that just might retain clarity, a smart move. Dunnfield Creek ran too high to fish effectively--flooded--yet the water remained clear. No, it hadn't the perfect clarity normally so appealing, yet no one would say it ran stained.

http://www.raritanheadwaters.org/

Further down this gulch are a few stone walls that may have functioned as part of the Morris Canal system.

Stone walls left, right and further back in the upper right, which possibly served the Morris Canal system. The Delaware and Raritan Canal flows into the Raritan River at New Brunswick to this day, and I think it's pretty cool that the lost Morris Canal ran in very close proximity to a South Branch Raritan River tributary. And this tributary Ledgewood or Drake's Brook (the brook is named Ledgewood closer to the source) runs within a fraction of a mile to the Black River headwaters, the Black River renamed the Lamington further below, flowing into the North Branch Raritan River down in Bedminster.

Husky Jerk Bass on a Drab Afternoon

Tried my favorite 15-acre Jersey pond north of Route 80. First I fished a black spinnerbait in shallows pretty slow, ending up sitting on the concrete spillway with boots on granite below, retrieving the spinnerbait really slow along bottom eight feet deep. That was the venture's highlight, having a little while to sit, slow down and let thoughts arise.

Then I marched back to my car a long way and switched to a Husky Jerk, intending to go scrabble among the rocks. A couple of other guys pulled in. They never followed me to the back of the pond, which takes some effort climbing rocks and shuffling aside brambles.

I caught this 2 1/2-pounder photographed, which my wide angle lens really did little justice to. Broken rhythm on retrieve. Missed another hit way back near the curve around to the other side.

Drab day, kind of chilly, 59 degrees and not much doing. I fished not quite two hours and it just never got better than one of those oppressive days, which nevertheless blesses you with a little realism about things, just doesn't feel good.

Knee Deep Club Stocks Lake Hopatcong with 1260 Rainbow and Brown Trout

The Knee Deep Club trout stocking took place today out of Dow's Boat Rentals. 1260 trout total came out of the Musky Fish Hatchery's tanks escorted to five boats, which distributed the rainbows and browns around the lake. 1000 of these fish range from 12 to 15 inches, the additional 260 from three to six pounds, but the big brown photographed above surely is at least seven pounds. From what I gathered, it's about 28 inches long.

That's not a fish photo. The man from the hatchery holds the fish right against the top of his waterproofing, which seems to show well for a company restraining the accentuation of an image and sticking to the facts. Customers have relied successfully on Musky for years. These fish are clean, healthy and now in the lake to provide a real nice fishery at least into June. Last year, summer never heated up enough to kill every or nearly every trout. A few got caught through July and possibly later.

KDC provides for any and everyone who will fish Lake Hopatcong. The possibility is there. Today's event a good time, it's just one example of club functions anyone who fishes can get involved in, whether individually or as a family. Membership includes at least 900 people total, and joining is as easy as Googling the club's name, filling out the form and paying the very modest fee, considering the value of these great fish.

KDC is a highly influential voice for Lake Hopatcong's fishery, with a successful history of negotiating with NJ DEP regarding stockings. In 1985, KDC initiated the stocking of hybrid striped bass in the lake, which has become a fantastic year round fishery. 1996 marks the year the club stocked the first muskies. It's amazing how the lake seems to have transformed overnight into a great musky destination. Join the club and enhance the value of your lake fishing experience. It makes a difference to be an insider, because you have a hand in making this lake what it is. You can come to the annual trout stocking event and carry trout to the stocking boats.

 That's the Big One

And Will it get Caught?

Went after the Big One

Two guys fished in the spot where I lost the 16-incher yesterday. I went downstream, missed some hits, caught two. I forgot to replace the one-pound test Fireline with two-pound test monofilament. The line test isn't the problem. Fireline is composed of thread-like material that salmon egg oil gums up. I gave up on a good spot because casting became all but impossible. I could not quite get the eggs in the zone, and too many flew off the hook. With two-pound mono and about the lightest tip possible for a rod, the weight of a single salmon egg and no more than a snap without swivel is enough for most situations. And if a little more reach is needed, snapping on a second leader adds the weight of another egg.

Further downstream a fast run has produced a lot of trout in the past, but today not one hit. The casting distance I could manage without tearing the salmon eggs off the hooks sufficient, there just didn't seem to be any fish here.

A nice, short romp. When I get a chance, I'm going to strip off the expensive Fireline and replace it. I may be back for more rainbows on salmon eggs yet.

North Branch Raritan River Rainbows on Salmon Eggs

Guys casting Trout Magnets and the like pulled four or five trout apiece out of the river in 10 or 15 minutes, and then the rainbows got picky. The jigs simply plummet for bottom and trout swoop on them. It's very easy to fish that way. Hookups are a sure bet, when trout tend to steal salmon eggs at least as often as get hooked. Where I positioned having come in at 4:40 (North Branch is restricted to 5 pm opening on stocking days), I could not quite put salmon eggs on the trout. Besides, I still fiddled with figuring out how current carried the eggs before the guy to my left had five trout and quit after 15 minutes. I caught an average rainbow, yet wasn't satisfied with the eggs on snell hooks, double leaders snapped on with no added weight, no swivel...I wasn't sure they got in the zone, so I snapped on a small swivel for added weight, and then decided this was too much and undid it.

I began missing hits, and lost at least a couple of trout I played for awhile. I use a 3 1/2-foot spinning rod about 8mm wide at the butt. It's got a much lighter tip than my 2 weight, six-foot fly rod. With two-pound test mono, a 10-inch trout makes drag useful. Today I tried one-pound test Fireline and do not recommend it for this kind of fishing. Salmon egg oil makes casting very frustrating. It gums the line on the spool and I felt relieved I could fish at all. Mono gets to be something of a mess, but not really a problem.

I missed more hits than I would want to admit. The difficulty in drifting salmon eggs as a method involves hookset especially. In general, if you let a trout take too long, it steals the bait, but if you set too soon, you might pull the hook through the egg without catching any of the mouth. Add to this the wide range of how trout take eggs. Sometimes a trout takes an egg whole and instantly gets hooked deep in the mouth as it turns like lightening. Another trout lips an egg and sort of chews on it without ever getting the hook point in position to catch. If you wait on a fish like that, it will simply force the egg from the hook, and you never really had a chance to set anyhow.

There are days you never get it right. Other times, it comes together and you catch most of the trout that take. It's easy, once you start on the wrong foot, to go downhill during the rest of the outing. One screw-up leads to more confusion, and you just don't get the timing right.

In between spots I enjoyed the persistent call of a red-winged blackbird. The first I have noticed this year. I also felt the presence of a brown dirt trail I walked remind me of river smallmouth bass fishing during summer, a much more relaxed pursuit than trout fishing among so many competitors on a stocking day.

I found a nice little run all by myself where I saw at least half a dozen trout through polarized lenses. Then a real nice one came into view, which I watched finally snatch an egg. Missed this trout of at least 16 inches. Despite so many fish humiliating me, I lingered and fished hard, missing hits here and there. Finally, I came to the bottom of my jar of Mike's Shrimp Eggs. With the two leaders on one snap I got a lot of casts with the last two eggs before one slipped off the hook. Now one egg left, I still managed to gain casting distance and make the zone. I saw my line stop when current would have carried it and reared back. That big trout shuddered for a second in my view on the line and felt great, gone the next instant.  

Spruce Run Reservoir Warm Evening Low Level

With 70-degree temperatures, a strong south breeze and some sun warming the water, I felt this evening might be one of those special experiences with northern pike, slab crappies and largemouths feeding near the mouth of Spruce Run Creek.

We drove onto the bridge and I said, "This is not good, Fred. We'll have a look."

Water down at least four feet, something of a basin forms near the tip of the earthen jetty, four or five feet deep. Perhaps some fish would move in and settle in those depths, but I felt like having a look at Black Brook Cove. I almost decided on unpacking for the jetty, and yet if we didn't check what the other spot looks like with water down, we'd never know.

We pulled in. "This would be a great spot to launch a kayak," Fred said. "I haven't been here in ages."

It didn't look promising. Too shallow where I hoped for a drop. Nevertheless, the creek channel has definition and I felt sure fish might move right up within casting range of a live-lined shiner. I set two bobbers also. Fred figured a pike might hit a Zara Spook. He got great casting range with it.

Water pretty cold, maybe it hit 50 today at most in shallows, if that. I got the bass live-lining the channel and missed a hit from something on a bobber rig. The bobber popped under, then back up, just as a pike plays with the bait. But when it finally went down, the line moved off slow like a bass takes. My guess: a bass small enough not to have got hooked.

Where are the Trout?



Three consecutive Opening Days at Locatong Creek felt deeply satisfying, but I find I move on in life before something or other begins to feel old. This way, I keep youth alive despite having outwardly clocked 54 years. Until Thursday, I figured we would forgo Opening Day this year. My family had plans to eat at the Ship Inn in Milford and hike to the Ice Cave, an abandoned iron mine just north of Phillipsburg. We got a family invitation for Easter, plans changed, and desire stirred to fish little Hakiokake Creek. I had an amazing experience fishing here Opening Day 1975.

In Milford, two creeks meet. The larger is designated Hakiokake. I'm not sure of the smaller creek's name, the creek photographed above where friends and I enjoyed trout fishing 1975 and times since. My son and I got out of the car. He walked upstream, I went downstream. Neither of us sighted any trout nor any Fish & Wildlife notices up. I may get around to checking online the stocking schedule to see if two creeks in Milford and Holland Township are listed.

We stopped at the public park beside the slightly larger creek. Here perhaps half a dozen people fished at about 11:00 a.m. I got word of 20 trout caught just upstream at a bridge, but I didn't care to fish. For me, it was a matter of revisiting my 1975 experience or else passing on fishing today. Matt's an aloof 16 and hadn't any outward insistence on trying.

We drove off, Wickecheochee Creek in mind to visit on a roundabout way home. I realized I had left my fishing license at home with stuff I need to sort. Matt's forgetful mind is like mine, so naturally he forgot his license too, now new to being licensed. No fishing for us today, but we would have a look at the Creek near Stockton I so admire.

We got as far as the green bridge, driving west from Route 29. Someone intending to fish pulled in behind. Here it is Opening Day, no one around, Fish & Wildlife notices up. I dropped three salmon eggs from atop the bridge while wearing polarized sunglasses, water below not perfectly clear, but clear enough to watch the eggs descend about five feet to no takers. I could only guess that if any trout had been stocked, they're very few. A few years back the situation here felt much the same. The few who fished reported nothing.

Meanwhile, my son had walked downstream. I watched with apprehensive eagerness as he attempted to cross the fairly wide Creek by hopping rocks. He got wet almost to his knees. And he persisted, looking in the water closely as he continued to walk. Suddenly he raised both hands to signal the size of a very big fish and waved me down.

Some must have been stocked. He guessed the trout to have been about 20 inches, darting upstream and out of sight through very shallow riffles. Surprising.

We rode on a mile or two to the Covered Bridge. We sighted one angler fishing. I noticed a few more Fish & Wildlife designations along the way. It's as if everyone has given up on trout fishing the Wickeocheochee, certainly not because it's an unsightly place.

Some years ago, I took Matt to Locatong Creek and very few trout seemed to have been stocked. Quite a number of people tried; very few reported any catches.

Where are the trout? If Fish & Wildlife designates a creek to be stocked, it should be. Where are the voices? I'm typing mine. Fish & Wildlife holds a public meeting concerning trout stocking in February at Pequest Hatchery.

Creeks offer fine trout fishing. I think some of the very finest, since close, intimate settings allow particularity of experience big name streams, lakes and ponds can't provide.

The word from Fish & Wildlife is that nearly 600,000 trout will be stocked this spring.

Wickecheoche