New Congress Protects Fishing and Hunting

Here's an article from Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership about the new 116th congress having reversed a rule from the former congress that would have made it easier to sell off public lands.

http://www.trcp.org/2019/01/02/house-may-reverse-rule-made-easier-sell-off-public-lands/

Slow as Usual

Round Valley Reservoir, a stubborn place during the winter, yielded my son and I no trout this afternoon, after we spent more time on the road than anticipated. Zach Merchant's shop was closed, and perhaps he was out fishing. We backtracked to the Sporting Life to buy our 2019 licenses, not playing any music on radio or other device, just talking fishing in that slowed-down way free of ordinary distractions. We got to talking deeply at the reservoir, too, the last half-hour leading to 4:00 pm Lot 2 area closure taking us by surprise. The ranger came driving down, that barking sound of the truck's alert signal going off to remind us it was time to go.

I was told at the Sporting Life some rainbows and even some lakers are getting caught. A lot of Binsky bladebaits are selling, lake trout hitting those.

What a long way up the road since I used to fish here two or three times a week on lunch breaks. It's been four years now, as of January 15th, since I left that job.

https://littonsfishinglines.blogspot.com/2017/03/round-valley-reservoir-rvta-trout.html

An End of the Year Recap

From the Daily Record, by Jim Stabile:

This year Runelvy Rodriguez broke

the state's landlocked salmon record.

(photo by Division F&W)

Goodbye to rainy 2018, welcome to 2019, hope the weather will return to normal.

This year, Runelvy Rodriquez of Northvale broke the longstanding for landlocked salmon record salmon eclipsing the previous state record set in 1951. She was trolling with a spoon on Lake Aeroflex June 2.

The shad run in the Delaware River was a good one, Peuest Trout Hatchery stocked more than 600,000 rainbows, and the Hackesttstown Hatchery stocked over one million warmwater fish. 

Lake trout and fat rainbows were caught in Round Valley Reservoir, the state's most popular fishing reservoir.  Some good catches of hybrid stripers were made in Spruce Run Reservoir and Lake Hopatcong, but fishing success was sporadic.

Hunters will be on the way to a good deer season, when the last deer will be harvested in February.  Bow season began Sept. 8.

Hunters and anglers will have a lot to do in the next month that begins on Tuesday.

That's when winter bow and permit muzzleloader season for deer opens, then on Saturday, the permit season for deer season starts.

Even non-hunters have noticed the lack of deer road kills on our roads, thanks to the deer seasons that started in September. 

Freshwater anglers have taken advantage of the good trout fishing in the streams when they're flooded, thanks to the holdover rainbows stocked in November.

Round Valley Reservoir rainbows are being caught from the shore, and muskies were caught  with shiners at Oxford Furnace Lake in Warren County.

Last weekend's rains and on Friday raised the water level of Lake Hopatcong.  It was noticeable in Landing and Woodport last week.  January is a great ice fishing month when the weather cooperates. 

The Knee Deep Club has scheduled ice fishing contests on Lake Hopatcong.  By the middle of the last January the lake was was measured eight to 10 inches.  Hardwater anglers hope for a good ice fishing season in the next two months..

The 36th annual Garden State Outdoor Sports Show opens for four days at the Raritan Expo Center in Edison on Jan. 10 with noted professional anglers who will entertain and inform of what they do to catch fish.


Calendar

Tuesday: Winter bow and permit muzzleloader season for deer opens

Wednesday: Lincoln Park Archers Winter Archery League, 80 Jacksonville Road, Towaco,  members and nonmembers; shooting will start at 7:30 p .m.; shooters will have a choice of Wednesday or Thursday nights.

Saturday: Permit shotgun season for deer starts

Jan. 8: Cole Baldino, TU manager for the Home Rivers Initiative, guest speaker for the Central Jersey TU Chapter, topic be "Bigger Wild Fish and Healthier Watersheds,"  7:30 p.m.  at the American Legion Hall in Dunellen .

Jan. 10: Last day of the duck season in the North Zone 

Jan. 10: Annual Fly Tying meeting of the Hacklebarney TU  with members and guest fly-tyers, 7:30 p.m.  at the American  Legion Hall Post 155 Whippany on Legion Road, downstairs; website is http://www.hacklebarneytu.org

Jan. 10: Garden State Outdoor  Sports Show opens at the Raritan Expo Center in Edison

Jan. 20: Knee Deep Club ice fishing contest at Lake Hopatcong

Jan. 21: Canada geese season opens in special winter zones

Introduction to the Dyson Sphere

This nine-minute video is optimistic about the future. Just a lot of fun. My father knew Freeman Dyson. Dad was Music Director at Trinity Church, Princeton, for many years, and I believe Dyson's daughter sang in one of the choirs.

https://youtu.be/pP44EPBMb8A

Winter Stalled

Last year, I posted about a real ice season ahead on December 21st, and we got just that. In short order. For more than a week now, with two warm Fridays and buckets of rain each of these days, weather seems more like April.

Nothing in the 10-day forecast indicates much more than skim ice when temperatures dip to the low to mid 20's three consecutive nights.

Happy New to all of you. I thought I better touch base since I haven't posted in awhile.

https://littonsfishinglines.blogspot.com/2017/12/real-season.html