Trout stamp required for stocked waters (Verona Park)?

[BrandonK]

I'm having trouble deciding to get a trout stamp if I never target trout and only lmb. There's a small lake near me in Verona Park that I'd like to fish in because its only 5 minutes away, but its apparently stocked with trout. I've never caught or fished for trout, or even heard of small ponds/lakes being stocked with them, and I always thought that it more of a fly fishing thing.

I tried searching around and I found completely conflicting answers, some
people saying you need a trout stamp for any trout stocked waters. Some people say you need it only to keep trout. Some people even say for specific lakes you don't. It's all very confusing. The official line I found on the njdep license site said something like you need a stamp if you are targeting and keeping trout, but its pretty unclear about fishing for other species.

I use crankbaits, spinnerbaits, and topwater frogs and lures for bass fishing, and sometimes doughballs for catfishing/carpfishing. Would using these baits count as targeting trout?

Here are some answers I found:
This person called up the F&W office and they told him a trout stamp is not required if you're not targeting/keeping them:

http://www.thebassbarn.com/forum/arc.../t-115714.html

This person apparently works for the nj f&w division and also says that you don't need one for bass fishing stocked waters:

http://www.thebassbarn.com/forum/sho...Stamp-Question

This is all I could find about the trout stamp issue. If you read through the threads its a bunch of conflicting answers. I'm curious as how many fisherman who don't target trout have a stamp or not. I'm not interested in trout, but Verona park is really close to me. Does anyone know of any other fishable waters near the caldwells/essex co.? The passaic river is close to me but I don't have a boat or anything.

[ithaca10]

try the res. by the turtle back zoo by mcclunes rest. you can fish that.

[flatcreek]

What's unclear about targeting or keeping trout. If you not fishing for them or keeping them you don't need a trout stamp. It doesn't matter what people say, only what the regs are and in this case it seems pretty clear.

[AndyS]

WELCOME to the site. It is a very grey area, and you won't find any answers to in the NJ Fishing Digest either. So if I'm standing in Ken Lockwood Gorge and the CO asks me why I don't have a trout stamp I say I am fishing for sunfish and not keeping any trout. This trout stamp debate can go on FOREVER. I say to be safe, if the place you are fishing has ever been stocked with trout in year 2013, you need a trout stamp, regardless.

Who said you need a boat to fish the Passaic ?

[mtman]

spoke with a c.o. years ago about this subject--his response was the intent of the angler based on the c.o's observation --if you're standing in the gorge with bait that is commonly used for trout--chances are you are going to need a stamp--fishing verona park a month after the last stocking with bass gear --i think no stamp is needed--the c.o.'s aren't dumb- they have seen it all and know what most guys are up to

[Eskimo]

.


If you're a freshwater fisherman, buy the stamp.
It's only a couple of bucks, it supports the hatcheries, and it gives you the option to keep a trout of you happen to catch one or decide to target them.



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