Ramapo Report 4/21 - NJFishing.com Your Best Online Source for Fishing Information in New Jersey

BT67 · #1 04-21-2021, 09:00 PM

First outing of the trout season for me. Was watching the weather today with the predicted T storms in the afternoon. Out mid morning, First spot my go to spot in Mahwah, decent flow...nada , nilch, nothing not a nibble or anything that resembled a fish seen(Obviously not stocked) 2nd spot picked 2 small stockers. Next spot , waited out storm, got back on river, now a helleva lot cooler and windy. Got 3 small stockers at this spot and thats it. Disappointed...probably fished for 5-6 hours just 2 weeks after the opener and fish were few and far between and what I caught were all small. 2nd year in a row now with Covid restrictions has really put a damper on the Ramapo fishery with is usually better with the help of TU spreading the fish around. There was supposedly a full pre season and April fish stocking all before the opener, where the hell are all the fish?

FASTEDDIE29 · #2 04-22-2021, 02:20 PM

It’s possible they skipped a couple spots with the state being short handed with help. They can swim up and down pretty quickly when pressured. Have you tried other spots near your favorite stretch? Hope you find em’ next time man.

Billfish715 · #3 04-23-2021, 08:28 AM

Eddie is on the money about the stocking. Yes, there was preseason stocking in many places but not all places. Seasonal helpers were limited so help with stocking was also limited. Some places were stocked in the days just before the opener. I know of several streams that were stocked with almost a full truckload of fish all off one bridge or in one spot. The same truck would then drive about 400 yards farther and dump the rest.

Other places on the stream were ignored. The trucks can only hold so many fish for only so long and in many cases, multiple stockings had to be done in one day. They had to release a massive amount of fish during a very short timeframe. Stocking was limited because of time and resources.

During the preseason period and the week following the opener, I fished at one spot that had been stocked at least twice with almost a full truckload of trout. It was non-stop catching. A move to a favorite spot not far from there was almost a complete shutout.

By now, some of the fish have spread out but the numbers are thin. In places where there is put and take fishing, the taking seemed to be pretty good on the opener.......if you were in the right place. When you figure that 200 trout might have been stocked in one spot on the stream, and 25 fishermen each caught and kept a limit, that’s 150 fish. If that was on opening day or the next day, how many of those 50 that are left are still where they were put?

I don’t blame the state. They had a big job to do. What would have taken an additional month to do was finished in a few weeks by condensing the schedule. I do think fewer and fewer fishermen will be out until the next stocking period. Even then, the majority of stocked waters will not receive any fish.

If you like fishing, you’ll have lots of room to yourself. If you like catching, you’ll have to be pretty good or wait until they stock again.

RWole · #4 04-23-2021, 10:16 AM

Hopefully the State goes back to the traditional stocking schedule. It is much nicer having the full season of stocking April - May. I think its much more beneficial for those without boats, gives them a longer season. I do not agree at all with the way stocking has been done the past 2 seasons.

Drossi · #5 04-23-2021, 11:44 AM

No complaints on this end regarding stocking. I've found fish each time I've gone out, save for one excursion to an obvious stocking point. I've also found fish places I know they weren't stocked in given the COVID protocols on stocking help so they have spread in the higher water.

Get out, walk, enjoy....it's not always about non-stop catching.

Hookmanski · #6 04-23-2021, 08:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Drossi

No complaints on this end regarding stocking. I've found fish each time I've gone out, save for one excursion to an obvious stocking point. I've also found fish places I know they weren't stocked in given the COVID protocols on stocking help so they have spread in the higher water.

Get out, walk, enjoy....it's not always about non-stop catching.

I agree with you man. Several times this year so far, I stopped off at random stocking points while running errands and was able to hook up with a stockie or two. They’re doing their best, and the fish are pretty, but you can’t expect it to be phenomenal given the circumstances. I love the hunt too which helps with that.