Winter solstice trout - South Branch Raritan 12/21

[Doug Vitale]

Tried my hand for the first time at winter trout fishing. It got dark so soon I only had a little over two hours by the time I got to the Lockwood Gorge. Very pretty scenery, and what a relaxing environment. The water was clear, cold, fast and fairly high. The KLG offers plenty of rapids, pools, and eddies to play with. I'm happy that it's now 'catch and release only'.

The bite was tough, but at least I beat the skunk. One rainbow around 2 lbs., and one stockie brown. You can see the lure in the photos. Both released healthy.

The SBR upstream from the KLG to Califon was full of fishermen today, and quite a few of them were fly fishermen. With temperatures in the 50s it's not surprising. It was 44 degrees when the sun went down.

Lessons learned: Snow-covered rocks are slippery. My hip boots aren't going to cut it for winter troutin' so I'm going to need a pair of neoprene waders. And next time I'm wearing thermal underwear! That water is ice cold. I went out dressed for fall fishing and I got lucky it didn't get down into the 30s, otherwise it would have been a very chilly lesson to learn.

[PGAProfishional]

Thanks for the report. Nice fish!

I agree with you, it's nice and peaceful this time of year. As long as it's not 60 degrees...lol

You can find a nice pair of Neoprene waders online (christmas pricing and possibly free shipping) They do make a difference. A bit hot in the summer, so hold on to your hip boots.

Best of luck out there on the water.

Happy Holidays!

[UglyStick]

Nice fish - way to get out there and get it done... +1 on the neoprene waders - that's what I was wearing fishing Friday with Mitch and Brendan. A good base layer pants and socks (plus 2nd pair of Carhart winter socks) and I was plenty toasty standing in the water all day. Great for winter & early spring - warm weather neoprene = swamp ass...

great job on the fishing .....definitely neoprene waders are the way to go.....I have a pair I bought on eBay for $30 brand new in the box during the offseason....you can find deals and save alot of $$$$ as long as you're patient.....you have to be careful in the winter because even though the weather is beautiful 60 degrees like yesterday sometimes the water is a bit chilly.....and definitely what Jim says is true to dress in layers.....good luck....and nice report and pics...great scenery here in NJ for sure!!!

[Lard Almighty]

Great fish! Interesting color choice on that plug for cold clear water, but it looks like the fish were on it. Way to think outside the box.

[dboyd101]

Will go against the grain here... Breathable waders and a few light layers are my preference for the ability to use the same waders in spring and summer... Sans swamp arse in the summer.

[The Birdman]

Nice pics & Fish

I was also out on the SBR at the gorge, above and below i-78 the same timeframe you were out

Got a lot more fish below i-78

You right abut the slippery conditions, i slipped with my chest waders on and my whole left arm was soaked.

[Cuz]

Nice story, son. The pictures came out really nice. I'm glad you have learned to enjoy nature all year through. Now if I can get you into shooting and hunting. It's another kind of natural high.
At least one son will follow in his dads footsteps. My granddaughters are next. Nature and all of Gods natural beauty are too nice to ignore. It's there for a reason.
Love, Dad