Surviving the Trout Opener
Growing up in Maine, I was exposed to trout fishing at a young age. Some of my earliest fishing memories are of ice fishing with my dad, jigging with salmon eggs to catch rainbows. As I got older, I spent days fishing in clear rivers for picky brook trout that would barely turn their heads to look at my lures. Trout became a symbol of enormous frustration, but also of huge accomplishment. Some of my most memorable fish (and I remember every single one) have been wild trout caught in my home state. The day I caught my first trout on the fly something clicked in my brain and infected me with a passion that no amount of bass fishing could ever cure. When I picked the University of Rhode Island for college, it was based almost entirely on the close proximity to great fishing. Nothing could have prepared me, however, for the trout fishing that goes on in the great state of Rhode Island.
On my first “opening day” in Rhody, I was with my close knit group of fishing friends. We loosely planned to fish one of the more popular ponds in the area, where we had heard the stocking trucks had put some extra large rainbows in. We showed up around 7am to a scene that I still laugh about to this day. It was utter fucking mayhem. There were hundreds of people crammed on the shores of a pond smaller in area than a football field. In some spots there were fishermen stacked two or three deep trying to get a line in. There were campers and barbeques, clear signs that people had camped out to secure their favorite spots. But the fish, oh the fish! Everywhere I looked folks were catching rainbow trout the size of skateboards. People of all ages were dragging fish up onto the banks, where they flopped in piles of dirt, discarded powerbait, and the blood of their fallen brethren. Children were poking at the floundering salmonids and screeching. Years later, Max famously said “for most Rhode Island kids, opening day is their first taste of blood”. As I stood there and watched the carnage I was completely dumbfounded, and slightly appalled at what these people thought that trout fishing represented. Yet all these years later, I wouldn’t miss opening day, which we affectionally dubbed “trout day”, for anything in the world. Below are a few tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way to help you navigate opening day of trout season, which happens in similar fashion in many states in the Northeast.
My first suggestion is to take trout day for exactly what it is. This isn’t Grand Lake Stream, and you’re not catching wild trout so innocent that it breaks your heart to hook them. These are factory farmed fish that are put into the equivalent of Chernobyl cooling ponds for the enjoyment of the American public. It’s how many kids in the Northeast are introduced to fishing, and a tradition for thousands of families every year. If you are a fly fisherman like myself, you’ve probably become a self loathing snob that judges every other fisherman on your favorite stretch of river that’s FFO. Allow yourself to shed that layer of fishing pretentiousness and bask in the glory of catching GMO trout that would eat an iphone charging block if given the chance.
For the most part, every fishable pond in the state will be packed to the tipping point on opening day. There is very little ettiquite, as everyone wants to catch their limit so they can bring home a full stringer then forget about it in the garage beer fridge. We’ve learned that there is literally no reason to get there early, especially if you’re planning to fly fish. Once 6am hits, those fish are going to be surrounded by thousands of floating balls of powerbait, shiny spoons, and every color of lure you can conceive. I’ve stood in place for two hours waiting for first light, only to get outfished by a kid who was usuing powerbait that was the same color as the boogers flowing shamlessly down his face. But I tipped my hat to the young man and learned an important lesson. Show up at 10am after most people have had their fill, then catch trout all day long on simple, natural patterns. For me, that means flies. I’ve caught hundreds of beautiful fish on opening day on the most basic fly patterns. Hares ears, pheasant tails, small emergers, and even dry flies. If you are a spinning gear fisherman, try using small earth worms or maggots with super light leader and small hooks. Believe me, every other fisherman has already thought “I’ll use brown powerbait because it looks like hatchery feed pellets!”. That works for the first 45 minutes, then the trout get weary because they’re in the New England version of a Russian Gulag. Be the guy that throws something completely different than what the surviving fish have been dodging all morning.
Another key tip I picked up on is to fish on the ends of ponds. Most people will just pick any open spot they can find, but if you have the option head for the end. The trout will spend all day long doing big circles at the ends as opposed to running the length of the pond. I don’t know why they do it, but they do. If the pond is too crowded, hit a river and walk down a ways. Most rivers get stocked with less fish than the popular ponds, but they get way less fishing pressure. Our plan this year is to fish a lesser known river in the morning, go to the diner, then head to our favorite trout pond when everyone else is going home to wash off the blood and take a nap. Trout day is this weekend, so hopefully the weather is good and the rainbows are stupid. If you see me out there, try not to judge me too hard for muscling twelve year olds out of my way so I can present a size 18 Barrs emerger to a fish that wont live past Memorial day.
-Grady
