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DEC operates 12 fish hatcheries and one fish pathology laboratory. Numerous fish species are reared for stocking into more than 1,200 public waters across the State. Annual production averages 900,000-1 million pounds of fish. All hatcheries are open to the public from spring through fall, and several are open year-round.

Adirondack Hatchery is located about 12 miles from the Village of Saranac Lake in Franklin County. This facility specializes in rearing landlocked Atlantic salmon for statewide distribution. Annual production averages 30,000 pounds of salmon, with most fish stocked as yearling smolts (six inches long) or as small fingerlings in the spring.

Bath Hatchery is located one mile from the Village of Bath in Steuben County. The hatchery rears lake trout, brown trout and rainbow trout. All of the lake trout and many of the rainbow trout reared here are obtained from fish collected from Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake. Annual production of all species is about 86,000 pounds.

Caledonia Hatchery, located in Livingston County in the Village of Caledonia, is the oldest hatchery in New York State and the Western Hemisphere. Caledonia Hatchery rears brown trout and chinook salmon. Virtually all of the two-year-old brown trout used in DEC's stocking program for 13-15 inch trout are produced at Caledonia Hatchery. Annual production is approximately 170,000 pounds.

Catskill Hatchery is located in Sullivan County near the Village of Livingston Manor, and near two of New York State's fabled trout streams, the Beaver Kill and Willowemoc Creek. This facility specializes in rearing brown trout and it maintains a brood stock capable of producing two million eggs. About 115,000 pounds of brown trout are produced annually.

Chateaugay Hatchery is located near the Village of Chateaugay in northern Franklin County. This facility has a very diverse rearing program which includes Raquette Lake strain lake, trout, brown trout, rainbow trout and brook trout, including the Temiscamiex domestic hybrid used extensively in Adirondack Mountain lakes and ponds. Annual production is approximately 90,000 pounds.

Chautauqua Hatchery is located near the Village of Mayville in Chautauqua County. This is the only DEC hatchery currently raising pure strain muskellunge, which are obtained from netting and egg collection on Chautauqua Lake and in some years from Waneta Lake. Pond-reared walleye fingerlings are also grown at this hatchery. Total production is 3,300 pounds annually.

Oneida Hatchery is located in the Village of Constantia in Oswego County, on the north shore of Oneida Lake. The hatchery was reconstructed, with work completed in 1992. The rearing program is focused on walleye, and includes egg collections from Oneida Lake (200-300 million eggs/year), and stocking of millions of walleye fry and about 220,000 advanced walleye fingerlings (four to six inches). Experimental culture of rare or threatened fishes, such as lake sturgeon and paddlefish, also occurs here. Annual fish production is about 6,000 pounds.

Randolph Hatchery is located in the Village of Randolph in Cattaraugus County. This is a major brood stock facility which annually handles five-six million brook, brown and rainbow trout eggs. Annual production totals 100,000 pounds of fish.

Rome Hatchery is located in Oneida County about four miles north of the City of Rome. The hatchery is one of DEC's largest, with annual production totaling nearly 160,000 pounds of brook and brown trout and, when available, kokanee salmon. Hatchery staff play a major role in providing fish for airplane and helicopter stocking of remote waters.

Rome Fish Disease Control Center also known as Rome Lab is located on Rome Hatchery property. Staff maintain brood stock of disease-resistant strains of brook and brown trout, and maintain a laboratory where research activities and disease diagnosis can be conducted. Staff are heavily involved in testing numerous stocks of cultured and wild fish for the presence of the organism causing whirling disease.

Salmon River Hatchery, located in the Village of Altmar in Oswego County, is the mainstay of DEC's stocking program for Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. The hatchery attracts more than 500,000 visitors annually, many of whom come to watch egg collections from steelhead, coho salmon and chinook salmon returning to the hatchery. Annual fish production totals 120,000 pounds.

South Otselic Hatchery is located in Chenango County in the Village of South Otselic. The hatchery rears the entire statewide supply of tiger muskellunge, and produces pond-reared walleye fingerlings, overwinters rainbow trout, and rears small lots of wild, heritage-strain brook trout. Annual production is 15,000 pounds of fish.

VanHornesville Hatchery is located in southern Herkimer County in the Village of VanHornesville. The hatchery raises rainbow trout, with production totaling about 30,000 pounds.

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New York Game & Fish Magazine

By Sheila Grant

From March through late fall, the Empire State offers anglers a wide variety of options for striper action. Tidal rivers, Big Apple bays and Long Island's shores offer excellent access to exciting striper destinations in spring.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) biologists need anglers' assistance to help them make informed management decisions about stripers and other popular marine species.

Anglers wishing to participate in the Striped Bass Cooperative Anglers Program can simply keep a logbook with scale samples, noting every fish they catch, from keeper to schoolie. At the end of the season, the DEC's Bureau of Marine Resources will review the information All participants will receive a copy of the annual report, along with updates and any regulation changes.

To participate, call (631) 444-0488. Or you can e-mail your request to fwmarine@gw.dec.state.ny.us.

According to Julia Socrates, a DEC marine biologist, the data collected to date indicates that in spring, stripers may be caught pretty much everywhere around Long Island.

"Stripers are going to be more prevalent in the bays, harbors, inlets and Long Island Sound than along the eastern Atlantic beaches," Socrates noted. "The timing of when stripers are most prevalent and where the sweet spots are varies yearly because those things are greatly influenced by water temperature, salinity and food abundance. The best advice "For someone not familiar with Long Island's striper fishery is to ask local bait shop and marina owners what they are hearing from striped bass fishermen. There are also many local newspapers and magazines that provide that kind of information. Word travels fast!"

Socrates reminded anglers that the rules are updated several times each year. Before heading out, review regulations at the DEC's Web site, www.dec.ny.gov/ outdoor/7894.html .

With Long Island Sound on one side, Great South Bay on the other, and all of the Atlantic Ocean beyond that, Long Island is an ideal fishing destination. Plentiful state parks here assure angler access to plenty of great striper fishing.

LONG ISLAND SOUND
For access to the heart of the Sound, head for Smithtown Bay. Forage fish school around wrecks, reefs and jetties, making the Long Beach area an excellent place to find hungry stripers.

Just a few miles offshore is the Smithtown Bay Artificial Reef. Hook a lively herring through the top of the head and troll this area for some serious strikes. Access may be had at Nissequogue River boat ramp on Old Dock Road, and at the Otto Schubert Boat Ramp or Long Beach Town Marina on Long Beach Road.

For plenty of angler access to the sound farther up the road, visit Wildwood State Park in Wading River. Also check out DeLorme's New York Atlas and Gazetteer, pages 25 to 29, for more Long Island access points.

GREAT SOUTH BAY
Oyster Bay offers excellent access to the waters of Great South Bay. The Harry Tappan Beach Boat Basin, the Theodore Roosevelt Beach and Marina, the Tobay Beach and Boat Basin and John J. Burns Park offer boat launches and shoreline access in the Oyster Bay area.

About midway up the island, Heckscher State Park in East Islip offers boat access to the southern shore.

A bit beyond that, anglers will want to explore the waters of Patchogue Bay. The town of Blue Point has several shoreline and boat access sites available.

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From New York Game & Fish

By Rod Cochran

If the 2008 trout season is anywhere near as good as last year's, Empire State fishermen who fish the Catskill streams will find the fishing absolutely phenomenal.

Across the state, informal reports indicate that last year, fishing success was at least above average. Upstate, however, a late-summer drought became a problem, especially in smaller headwaters. By the end of August, the seasonal rainfall was two inches short of the average, and Lake Ontario was nine inches below normal.

During September, low water levels in the Salmon River stressed spawning salmon, resulting in higher mortality -- and a one-month delay in the opening of the annual fly-fishing-only, catch-and-release season at Altmar.

Historically, floods or drought rarely have lasting effects on trout populations. At press time, expectations were for another great season, according to Jim Daley, head of the Cold Water Unit for the New York Department of Environmental Conservation.

Here's a brief look at current trout-management operations across the state, followed by regional fishing recommendations by fisheries biologists for the upcoming season:

Of most interest to trout fishermen is the major trout-management program carried out by the DEC -- the annual stocking of approximately 2.3 million catchable-size trout in some 3,100 miles of streams, and 300 lakes and ponds (exclusive of the Lake Ontario and Lake Erie programs).

Last season, for example, 1.8 million brown trout, 392,00 rainbow trout and 151,000 brook trout were released. Stockings of 2-year-old brown trout continue to increase, with enthusiastic support from fishermen. Last season, approximately 89,000 browns from 12 to 13 inches in length were planted, with some as large as 15 inches long.

Additionally, the DEC conducts a trout and salmon fingerling-stocking program aimed at producing catchable-sized fish during succeeding years. More than 2 million lake trout, steelhead, landlocked salmon, splake and coho salmon are stocked in appropriate waters exclusive of lakes Ontario and Erie.

For anglers seeking quiet wilderness-like settings, the DEC stocked 340,000 brook trout fingerlings in 335 ponds. With this expansive stocking program well established, DEC fisheries managers are quick to point out that New York's thousands of miles of wild trout streams provide excellent fishing, a real treasure in today's fishing world.

Highlights of other trout-management programs include the Public Fishing Rights (PFR) program on coldwater streams, a high-priority project that receives money from the stateâ¬"s Environmental Protection Fund to provide public fishing easements on private land. PFR signs designate these stretches. But fishermen are cautioned that landowners may post these parcels against other activities besides fishing.

The Federal Sport Fish Restoration Fund reimburses the DEC up to 75 percent of the costs for various projects, including restoring native brook trout in six to 10 ponds by adding lime and eliminating nuisance fish; managing a data base of more than 69,000 surveys of 4,000 lakes and ponds conducted since 1926; and conducting statewide creel surveys to determine angler catches, sizes of fish caught and angler-use patterns.

A new program spearheaded by Trout Unlimited is the Eastern Brook Trout Joint Venture, a 17-state effort to restore healthy, fishable brook trout populations throughout their native range.

A couple of years ago, it was discovered that only 5 percent of the country's historical brook trout habitat remains intact. New York's Heritage Brook Trout program will be a leader in this effort by preserving several genetically pure strains of Adirondack brookies.

Lengthening open seasons and permitting year-round, catch-and-release trout fishing are standard procedure on waters where ecological conditions and fishing pressure permit.

The DEC is taking aggressive steps to limit the spread of VHS, a virus harmless to humans but deadly to fish. Transport ships coming from Europe are spreading the virus throughout the Great Lakes region.

Scientists monitor the disease on nearly a daily basis, and hatcheries are being protected from contamination. The most recent reports indicate that VHS is continuing to spread.

As a result, new restrictions are in place regarding the use and transportation of baitfish and live fish. A statewide Invasive Species Council has been formed to coordinate efforts to protect native species by controlling dangerous imported pests and stopping future invasions.

Here's a region-by-region update on what state biologists are doing to improve and enhance fishing opportunities for the 2008 season:

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By
Robert W. Streeter

As an angler who has pretty much spent a lifetime attempting to fool fish with various concoctions of feathers and fur tied on expensive hooks, I can still always remember the firsts. The first fish of each species caught on the fly rod is indelibly etched in my mind, and one such first was a foot-long landlocked salmon.

I was fishing below a dam on a beautiful river nestled in the Adirondacks. The water was still a little too cold for catching trout on dry flies, so I tied on a simple yellow streamer and put a split shot on my leader about three feet above the fly. On the second cast something grabbed the streamer, and when the fish was finally brought in to the net it was obvious that it was not a trout. The little landlocked salmon was almost completely silver, with the exception a few spots reminiscent of a brown trout on its back.

The place where I caught my first landlocked salmon was the Schroon River, a mid-sized Adirondack trout water located in Warren and Essex counties. The Schroon is unique in one respect; it offers anglers who try its waters the possibility of the unusual. The Schroon is one of only a handful of rivers where it is possible to catch a brook, brown, and rainbow trout all in the same outing. In addition, the Schroon holds some landlocked salmon. One spring I even saw an angler land a decent-sized lake trout in the river right below the Starbuckville dam!

The Schroon originates in the mountains of Essex County, in North Hudson township and flows southward to Schroon Lake. The river picks up again as the outlet of Schroon Lake. The river is smaller upstream of the lake than it is downstream, but this section has some good places to fish.

Below Schroon Lake, the river is bigger and a little bolder in spots as it cruises south to its rendezvous with the mighty Hudson. The lower river starts near Pottersville and flows through South Horicon, Starbuckville and Riverbank along the way. One of the most popular sections for trout is from the dam at Starbuckville downstream to Riverbank.

The best fishing on the Schroon typically takes place in May and June, and then again in September.

If you are a die-hard fisherman, the regulations for trout fishing in the Schroon could not be more generous. In Warren County, trout season on the Schroon River is all year long from Schroon Lake downstream to the Starbuckville dam, and then downstream of the dam as well. The same rules apply for the section of the Schroon from Alder Meadow Road downstream to the county border in Essex County. The creel limit is five trout of any size.

Another great aspect of fishing the Schroon River is the ample public access. The public fishing on the Schroon River is available from the Schroon Town Line to Alder Meadow Road, from Alder Meadow Road to Schroon Lake, From Rock Road Avenue to the Warrensburg Town Line, and from the Town Line to Riverbank. The access is not total in these areas, and anglers are advised to look for the signs indicating public fishing rights.

The NYSDEC Region 5 Office produces a brochure with maps of the public fishing rights sections of the Schroon, and copies are available by calling the Warrensburg DEC Fisheries Office at 623-1200.

The Schroon River is well stocked by the state DEC and also by the Warren County fish hatchery. The county stocks the stream with both brook trout and rainbows. The state stocks the river with both browns and rainbows. Both the DEC and Warren County stock the river with some larger trout as well. The Schroon also has plenty of hold over fish on most years.

In terms of insect hatches, the Schroon gets the same hatches most Adirondack trout streams receive. Look for stoneflies, caddis, and some of the major mayfly hatches including a decent representation of yellow mayflies like sulphers, and cream variants. One of my favorite Adirondack hatches are the Blue-winged Olives, which can vary in size from stream to stream but they provide great trout fishing. I've caught some nice fish on Pheasant-tail nymphs there during the summer. Fly anglers should also consider trying terrestrial patterns like ants as well.

The river is a good destination for bait fishing anglers, and for spin fishing. The river has enough size for these methods of fishing to work very well, even during the warmer weather when there is insect activity.

The Schroon offers yet another possibility for trout anglers. The section of the river from Starbuckville downstream, in addition to the good fishing, is also a popular canoe and kayak destination. While it is certainly not all flatwater and will require some skill to navigate, it is possible to combine fishing and paddling into a memorable trip on the Schroon. Be sure and scout out the trip before heading downstream and always use appropriate personal floatation devices. Doing a float trip on the Schroon will open up water that shorebound anglers can't easily access, improving the odds on successful fishing.

Anglers fishing the Schroon River for trout should keep an eye on the water temperature, especially during July and August. Some sections of the stream can warm up during hot summer weather, and while the stream generally stays within the range where trout survive well, warm water is not conducive to catch-and-release fishing.

There are a couple of campgrounds right on the river, including two right near Warrensburg. There are also plenty of small hotels and motels in the area, and if other members of the family are looking for something else to do Lake George and the Great Escape theme park are only a couple of exits down the Northway.

In fly-fishing, you never forget the firsts, and somehow you are always drawn back to them. Today, my workplace is in Warrensburg, right on the banks of the very same river that produced my first landlock!

FishNY.com is offering you a chance to call in fishing updates regarding your daily catch or adventures on New York's fishing water's. This service is free to use and can be accessed easily from any phone. The toll free number is 315.381.5013 and can be accessed at any time day or night.

Click on the audio update above to hear an example. You will be prompted to leave a message and we ask that you detail the area or body of water you're reporting on, the activity and any information you want regarding your business.

We will post messages on the web for our users daily and you can update the message as frequently as you'd like.

It's as easy as dialing your phone and leaving a detailed message! We hope to hear from you soon.

New York has an astonishing wealth of land and water resources. The state has hundreds of miles of coastline, with estuaries and ocean beaches providing excellent shore casting opportunities. New York also boasts 70,000 miles of rivers and streams, 4,000 lakes and ponds and 2.4 million acres of wetlands. From Montauk to Lake Erie, freshwater to saltwater, no other State can match the diversity of New York State. Such diversity includes catching a muskie on the St. Lawrence River, hooking up with a king salmon in Lake Ontario, fishing for trout in the Adirondacks, fly fishing in the famous Delaware River, chasing strippers on the Hudson, trolling for lake trout in Lake George, catching giant bass in Lake Champlain, and fishing for walleyes in Lake Erie to just name a few. Please take the time to appreciate everything New York State has to offer for anglers of all types.

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