Week of June 8th 2025: Stream Choice

Week of June 8th

Well, no one likes to say it, but watch those river temps.  They have reached the upper 60s and even 70 degrees.  Carry a stream thermometer and check our website for the most up-to-date temps.  When the water temperature gets into the upper 60s the oxygen levels drop precipitously.  At 70 degrees there is such a dearth of oxygen that trout can not recuperate from the stress of fighting an angler and will die.  Even careful in-stream resuscitation is not enough to revive them.  For conservation minded anglers, it is time to seek out warm water species or take the time to find cooler water in the limestone creeks in PA or the tailwaters in the Catskills. 

No need to leave Jersey just yet, though!  NJ Fish and Game has stocked ponds and lakes with abundant panfish and bass.  Their digest and website has specific details on where to go and park. Locally, Mountain Farm pond and Teetertown preserve are the closest options, with Teetertown offering a small and large pond, which includes a casting dock and plenty of bank to cast. Mountain Farm pond also has crappie - perhaps the most unfortunately named fish there is.  The one pictured took a mop fly (what else?) on Saturday morning.   Small poppers and wooly buggers are enough to get you started, but panfish and bass will eat nymphs, dry flies, and grasshoppers from the surface.  Spruce Run reservoir is back to 90% capacity and north of the Pequest river offers scores of little lakes with public access and small watercraft launches.  Bring lunch and check out a few! 

The South Branch of the Raritan, below Clinton, is a great place for warm water river fishing and there are a series of trails and pull-outs (again, check the NJ fishing digest) that can keep us busy. West of the shop is, of course, the main stem of the Delaware.  In short, there is still plenty of fresh water, in casting distance, that can be fished.

Does this mean that trout fishing is closed for the season? Let’s hope not. A few days and nights of cool temps can bring the temperature down enough, and coincide with an Isonychia hatch, to extend the mayfly season for a few more outings if the timing is right.

See you out there, Roy B.