DEM
Stocking Local Waters With Trout For Columbus Day Weekend
The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) will begin
stocking trout in ponds across Rhode Island next week in advance of Columbus
Day weekend – a popular time for recreational fishing.
The
following waters will be stocked with rainbow and brook trout before Columbus
Day
-
Burrillville – Round Top Ponds - Charlestown – Lower Shannock, Pawcatuck River
- Coventry – Carbuncle Pond - Exeter – Breakheart Pond, Browning Mill Pond -
Glocester – Spring Grove Pond - Lincoln – Olney Pond (Lincoln Woods State Park)
- North Kingstown – Silver Spring Lake - Richmond – Meadowbrook Pond, Beaver
River, Wyoming Pond - Scituate – Hope Mill Landing, Upper Pawtuxet River -
South Kingstown – Barber Pond - Other selected areas on the Wood and Pawcatuck
Rivers.
For
daily stocking updates, follow DEM's outdoor education page on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/RIFishwildlife/
Anglers and other recreationists are reminded that at this time of the year, the threat of cyanobacteria or blue-green algae may be found in Rhode Island lakes and ponds.
Currently there are several advisories statewide.
There is an advisory at Spectacle Pond, Blackamore Pond, Cranston; Central Pond, Ten Mile River, Omega Pond, Turner Reservoir, East Providence; Almy Pond, Newport; Tarkiln Pond, North Smithfield; Melville Ponds, Sisson Pond, Portsmouth; Mashapaug Pond, Roosevelt, Willow, Edgewood, and Pleasure Lakes, Japanese Gardens (all in Roger Williams Park), Providence; and Slack Reservoir, Smithfield-Johnston; and Little Pond, Warwick.
Anglers and others should avoid these ponds for recreation. Waters with cyanobacteria and/or blue-green algae are toxic to animals.
A
2018 fishing license is required for anglers 15 years of age and older. A Trout
Conservation Stamp is also required of anyone wishing to keep or possess a
trout or to fish in a catch-and-release or 'fly-fishing only' area.
Trout Stamps are not required for persons possessing trout taken from a lake or pond that shares a border with Rhode Island. Fishing licenses can only be purchased online at www.dem.ri.gov/huntfish.
Online fishing licenses and the Trout Conservation Stamp can also be obtained via an authorized agent. Visit the DEM website for a current list of licensed vendors. Anglers are encouraged to check the list prior to visiting a vendor to purchase a license.
Trout Stamps are not required for persons possessing trout taken from a lake or pond that shares a border with Rhode Island. Fishing licenses can only be purchased online at www.dem.ri.gov/huntfish.
Online fishing licenses and the Trout Conservation Stamp can also be obtained via an authorized agent. Visit the DEM website for a current list of licensed vendors. Anglers are encouraged to check the list prior to visiting a vendor to purchase a license.
License
fees are $18 for Rhode Island residents and current members of the Armed
Forces, $33 for a combination hunting and fishing license, $35 for
non-residents, and $16 for a tourist three-consecutive-day license. Licenses
are free for anglers over 65 (trout stamp not required) - as well as for those
with a 100-percent disability.
The
daily creel and possession limit for trout is five from April 14, 2018, through
November 30, 2018; and two from December 1, 2018, to February 28, 2019.
The creel /possession limit for trout taken in the Wood River between RT. 165 and Barberville Dam at Arcadia Road is two fish from the second Saturday in May (May 12, 2018) through the last day of February (February 28, 2019). Catch and release is encouraged for wild brook trout.
The creel /possession limit for trout taken in the Wood River between RT. 165 and Barberville Dam at Arcadia Road is two fish from the second Saturday in May (May 12, 2018) through the last day of February (February 28, 2019). Catch and release is encouraged for wild brook trout.
State
law requires that boaters always have personal flotation devices for each
person, and that they do not drink and operate a boat. Boaters should also be
sure their craft is seaworthy before going out on the state's waterways.
To
prevent the spread of invasive weeds and other harmful aquatic "hitch
hikers," Rhode Island strictly prohibits the use of external felt soled or
any natural or synthetic porous material capable of absorbing water in any
freshwaters in the state.
This includes any waters shared with adjacent states in which Rhode Island fishing regulations apply.
For example, fanwort's invasion of fresh water bodies in New England is attributed to boats, trailers, live-wells, boat bilges, and fishing equipment carrying fragments of it from other, already-compromised water bodies.
For these reasons, DEM recommends that all boaters thoroughly clean their vessels and equipment of attached weeds before and after using Rhode Island lakes, ponds, and rivers at a distance away from these freshwaters.
This includes any waters shared with adjacent states in which Rhode Island fishing regulations apply.
For example, fanwort's invasion of fresh water bodies in New England is attributed to boats, trailers, live-wells, boat bilges, and fishing equipment carrying fragments of it from other, already-compromised water bodies.
For these reasons, DEM recommends that all boaters thoroughly clean their vessels and equipment of attached weeds before and after using Rhode Island lakes, ponds, and rivers at a distance away from these freshwaters.
For
a list of designated trout waters and information of interest to anglers visit
www.dem.ri.gov. Follow DEM on Twitter (@RhodeIslandDEM) or Facebook at
www.facebook.com/RhodeIslandDEM for timely updates.
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