A mixed bag of changes to fishing regulations now in effect.

 After cleaning up a good portion of the winter debris, (the Town snow plow deposits about a third of the road surface on my lawn each winter), I left for an afternoon drive up the WB.  Stopped and chatted with an old river friend and sat in one of his streamside chairs for about twenty minutes looking for bugs.  Saw a number of  tiny live specs , one stone fly, two paraleps, three boats and not a single rise.  Going home for the weekend to try to catch some fish for the trout pond.

Had a chance to look over the new "simplified" regulations that went into effect on April 1st.

New York has established a one trout any size, limit on the entire Delaware up to both dams.  Pennsylvania has left the two fish at least twelve inches long limit on the WB border water and the one fish fourteen inches long on the BR.  Hopefully PA will at least modify the WB limit to one fish.  

In NY the season for taking a fish is April 1st to October 15th throughout the Delaware.  The entire river system will remain open for the remainder of the year as a catch and release fishery with artificial lures only.  This change has three negative aspects. It will be legal to fish for spawning trout that were previously protected, fishermen will, for seven months, run the risk of unknowingly walking on brown trout eggs buried in the gravel, and at least for a while NY and PA may be enforcing different rules. 

The Upper East Branch will no longer be stocked.  In recent years the DEC has stocked two and three year old trout there and I personally feel that it has had a negative impact on wild trout survival.  Time will tell if there is an increase in wild trout  (as has been the case in many rivers when stocking was terminated) but it will be two or three years before the wild trout provide anglers with any joy.

If I'm reading the new regulations correctly the WB and EB above the reservoirs will now be open until Oct 15th and then on a catch and release basis until April 1st.  If this is the case, anglers will have a chance to catch some of the big reservoir fish when they move into the rivers to spawn.  

The Beaverkill limit appears to have been reduced in some areas to three fish with a further restriction that only one fish over 12 inches can be taken.  

Looked as Region 7 (my home water) and was surprised to find that the West Branch of the Delaware is now located there.  It sure will cut down my driving time to the river.

The regulations are available on line and everyone should take the time to read  how they pertain to the rivers they intend to fish.  The rivers are graded into five classifications and the limits, sizes and seasons vary according to the classification designations.  

I've done my best in highlighting the changes but if any of the information above turns out to be wrong, telling the warden "Angler 119 said"  will not get you out of the ticket.     

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