Trout season opens April 4

Delaware will open the trout season Saturday, April 4, in New Castle County. So, you may ask, why am I writing about a trout season way up north in New Castle County? Simply because the streams up there are more like the type of trout fishing I am used to, and they even have a fly-fishing-only section of White Clay Creek for those who are so afflicted. 

I caught my very first freshwater trout back in the 1950s out of Beaver Run on a small Dare-Devil red and silver spoon long before Delaware began its trout stocking program. I was fishing with my friend Sunny Crowell. We had ridden our bikes out from Claymont to Beaver Valley to fish the Brandywine Creek and Beaver Run. I had tossed my spoon under the falls created by the dam on Beaver Run. This fish darted out and grabbed it. I don’t know who was more surprised, me or the fish, but I won the battle and the fish went on my stringer. In retrospect, the trout must have come downstream in the Brandywine from Pennsylvania and then up Beaver Run until it hit the dam. Wherever it came from, it gave me the biggest fish of the day, and that was the only day I outfished Sunny.

Opening Day in New Castle County is the same as here in Sussex County. It is set aside for young folks under the age of 16. Fishing begins at 7 a.m. on all designated trout waters. All licensed trout fishermen may take part in the action beginning Sunday, April 5, a half-hour before sunrise.

White Clay Creek is the epicenter of trout fishing on both opening days in New Castle County. Unless things have changed, parking is at a premium, and fishing space along the bank is even more so.

When I took both of my boys trout fishing, we went to Wilson Run in Brandywine Springs State Park. It was still crowded, but nothing like White Clay Creek. Then, as now, we had to wait until 7 a.m. before we could wet a line, but once lines went in, trout came out. We fished next to the bridge at the entrance to the park. We usually had our limit in short order. If I remember correctly, yellow was the best color for lure or bait.

As I have mentioned before, I am still recovering from that broken hip, so I won’t make opening day. I am supposed to get a procedure in early April to relieve the discomfort. If it works, perhaps I can get up to Wilson Run late in the season. 

Recreational fishing funding

The Council on Recreational Fishing Funding met in Dover March 24, to discuss and vote on the various projects that have come before the council. The funding for all projects comes from the Delaware General Fishing License and the Federal Aid in Sportfish Restoration funds. The federal money comes from a surtax on fishing gear and a very small cut (less than 1%) of the federal gasoline tax collected by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Approved projects are funded with 25% state money and 75% federal money.  

Since our license money is often more than enough to cover the available federal funds, there is an overage that is saved to cover large projects such as Dobbinsville Pier in New Castle County. The cost of the pier is estimated at $2.5 million.

Projects currently under consideration include: Becks Pond fishing pier, Port Mahon boat ramp reconstruction, First State Research Vessel Dock and Building, and the reconstruction of Coursey Pond boat ramp.

There are special license plates for salt- and freshwater fishermen. Chairman Pankowski presented quite a few new designs for the consideration of the council. One of the complaints about the old plates was the artwork behind the license numbers made it hard to read the numbers. Since that was a problem, I selected plates with striped bass along the sides or a surf fisherman on the left corner for saltwater and largemouth bass on the left side for freshwater. The chairman collected all the votes and said he would contact those members who were absent from the meeting to get their votes.

Finally, the chairman brought out several designs for a plaque with all of the council member names on it he wants to place at or near Dobbinsville Pier when it is complete. If you have ever noticed a historical marker, several of his ideas resembled those. Others were smaller and would be placed on a wall inside the pier or somewhere else such as the tackle shop or men’s room.

The idea was killed. If such a plaque was to go up on one project, it would have to go up on all projects funded with license money.