Found this video today. Thoughts? I'm giving it a bit before adding my 2¢

[flyfishdelawhere]

Nice! my feedback is to not pay any mind to the haters. With trout come the hierarchy’s some like to create to elevate their own self worth. keep doing what your doing, it’s not hurting anything and it might just work.

Thanks! The fact is, there are no native brown trout streams or creeks in America. It all started with a stocking. So the possibility is increase, with a stocking, rather than not

 

[Mike]

There is a small wild BT population near the headwaters of the East Branch. We did not find any within the stocked trout section about 10 yrs or perhaps a little less ago. Nevertheless, the E Br has some cooler tenp than might be expected farther downstream at Landenberg at least until very early July or mid July.

The Middle Branch was found to have fingerlings during a fish kill in late spring or early summer following a fall stocking of adults. (E Br and Middle Br are in Pa ). This was consistent with what occurred in a Bucks Co warmwater stocked trout stream immediately following its first or second fall stocking based on a fish population survey. In both cases, and as would be expected, no wild adults or even yearlings were ever reported or surveyed because summer water temps eventually got too warm.

No wild trout were ever reported to me from the Pa portion of White Clay proper and when I added that small stretch to the stocking program I anticipated warm summer temps, plus the substrate habitat at that time was comprised of sand as I recall plus an abundance of boulders. That was in the mid1980’s, but I suspect not much has changed due to its low gradient, although it may be a bit cooler going into the summer due to 40 more yrs of riparian vegetative growth/ maturation.

All of the above are good stocked sections in Pa and have some scenic, forested stretches surrounded by pastoral settings, particularly within the White Clay Ck Preserve, managed by Pa DCNR.

 

[globug15]

I feel like the real fool for even watching ten minutes of this before I just shut it off. "Reel Change" gave me the impression it was going to be an inspiring personal story... not watching 20 inch stockies go into an infertile stream.

 

[Mike]

I feel like the real fool for even watching ten minutes of this before I just shut it off. "Reel Change" gave me the impression it was going to be an inspiring personal story... not watching 20 inch stockies go into an infertile stream.

Just to clarify, it is a stocked trout stream, but not infertile.

 

[krayfish2]

I watched the video and formed my own opinion. I'm not judging or claiming that my opinion is the right one. Just wanted to see what others thought before I opened my pie hole and inserted my foot in it 😂.

I'm not belittling a group of older guys for doing what they are doing. Hell, I'm not far behind them in age. Correct me if I'm wrong FFD but I saw your camaraderie just as important as the fishing. Like I said, think you guys would have just as much fun playing cards or playing horseshoes and that's great. If your intent is to try and get some natural reproduction in there again, I would think you would want to monitor the water quality, assist neighboring landowners in best practices, improve spawning habitat, etc. While I might think your efforts are peeing up a rope, you're having fun doing it and who knows.... you might prove many of us wrong. Hope you do.

 

[JimKennedy]

It’s not my thing. I participate in stocking trout for teaching kids how to fly fish, but my preference is wild.

But, like I tell the kids: if you’re having fun, you’re doing it right.

 

[AFISHN]

Ok, my take is there's a group of old guys with disposable income that love to fish. I think they enjoy each other's company as much as they enjoy fishing. Guessing they would be just as happy playing cards or chess with each other.

They see the opportunity to have their own fish nirvana by ponying up money and stocking fish. I'm guessing many of us would toss cash out to have your own stream section for a few months.

Can neither confirm or deny that that stream ever supported a worthwhile wild population. Highly doubt that dumping in 20-in pellet heads will ever reestablish a wild population. Pure speculation but I think that they realize it won't re-establish wild and use that as a cover for their stocking. Seems more admirable I suppose. If they really wanted to reestablish wild fish, wouldn't they monitor water quality, ensure that spawning habitat remains intact and want to minimize stocking?

I'm not saying that they had ulterior motives but I highly doubt that they truly believe they're doing something righteous. I felt like I was watching a PFBC propaganda reel and was waiting for the tagline "Delivering another truckload of family fishing fun" to appear on screen.

Probably not hurting much by dumping fish into a marginal stream, I'll never go there and it just seemed hokey to me.

Tight lines,
K

I think you nailed it

 

[Oregon_OwlII]

I welcome all feedback! This is a work in progress. We have been observing this creeks restoration for the last 5 years. This isn’t the first spawning stock we have done and it won’t be the last. There are wild trout way up stream in PA, so it has potential lower downstream in Delaware. Maybe this is a complete waste too, but we will have a blast trying. It gives us hope. The same reason we all flyfish, with the hope of catching a fish. This gives another layer of hope. We got the regulations changed, which is a step in the right direction. The flyfishing only section provides less pressure. Plus, it provides a different sense of respect to the trout. Throwing a treble lure and ripping it out of the trout’s mouth compared to a barbless hook, or worst case a small single barbed hook, is much different.
I’m not saying that this will be a wild stream in 5 years. But it could be a wild stream in 10. And if not, then I stocked a stream near my house that Im able to flyfish with multiple layers of hope. While many other fly fishers were able to enjoy as well.
One thing to keep in mind is access. Not all of us have the time or access to go fish a wild stream, if we could, don’t you think we would? The hand your dealt can win a game, if played right! I welcome you all to come down to Delaware and enjoy this creek, so you can tell your grandkids you fished it prior to when it was a class A stream 😉…

If there is no reproduction in that section, you might want to consider stream temperature monitoring. Temps can be the biggest limiting factor. What is causing temps to rise in that stream? Lack of tree canopy upstream? A pond or set of ponds draining warm water into the stream? If you can't cool the water down, you'll never get reproduction, IMHO. I don't suspect there are water chemistry issues, especially if the aquatic insect life is good. Stocking may add a number of friends to this stream, but it won't solve whatever issues are causing a lack of reproduction. Has the local fisheries biologist weighed in?