February 5, 2016 at 11:01 am
By Jason Seiders, Regional Fisheries Biologist, Belgrade Lakes Region
The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife stocks thousands of brook trout each year to provide ice anglers with an opportunity to catch Maine’s heritage fish, without needing to stray too far from home. These trout are stocked to provide anglers with the thrill of catching these beautiful fish, and to allow them to harvest a fish or two to take home for a wonderful meal.
The truth is, many of the waters that we stock with brook trout do not provide adequate habitat to allow these fish to survive through the summer. For that reason, we stock fish of legal size so that anglers may harvest these fish if they choose. Some of these fish are large and mature, and the females may even have eggs. During our ice angler surveys, we regularly encounter folks that have caught these mature females, and they’ve released them because they feel the fish will spawn and create more trout for the fishery. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case. These fish will not spawn successfully in these waters, so anglers should feel free to keep these fish if they wish.
We stock brook trout in a variety of sizes to provide anglers with the chance to catch everything from a 
beautiful 7-inch trout up to a 20-inch fish of a lifetime. We also stock a large number of fish that fall somewhere in the middle of that range, typically between 12 and 15 inches long. These fish provide good action, a nice fight, and potentially a pleasant fish dinner.
Below are some tips that will greatly improve your chances at catching brook trout through the ice. Good luck!
The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife stocks thousands of brook trout each year to provide ice anglers with an opportunity to catch Maine’s heritage fish, without needing to stray too far from home. These trout are stocked to provide anglers with the thrill of catching these beautiful fish, and to allow them to harvest a fish or two to take home for a wonderful meal.
The truth is, many of the waters that we stock with brook trout do not provide adequate habitat to allow these fish to survive through the summer. For that reason, we stock fish of legal size so that anglers may harvest these fish if they choose. Some of these fish are large and mature, and the females may even have eggs. During our ice angler surveys, we regularly encounter folks that have caught these mature females, and they’ve released them because they feel the fish will spawn and create more trout for the fishery. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case. These fish will not spawn successfully in these waters, so anglers should feel free to keep these fish if they wish.
We stock brook trout in a variety of sizes to provide anglers with the chance to catch everything from a beautiful 7-inch trout up to a 20-inch fish of a lifetime. We also stock a large number of fish that fall somewhere in the middle of that range, typically between 12 and 15 inches long. These fish provide good action, a nice fight, and potentially a pleasant fish dinner.
Below are some tips that will greatly improve your chances at catching brook trout through the ice. Good luck!
- Fish shallow! Brook trout are much more likely to travel in 1-4 feet of water. Stay close to shore and resist the temptation to fish deeper water.
- Use small bait. Small minnows work well, and worms and night crawlers are exceptional bait.
- Jigging is very effective. Use small jigs on light line (4-pound test works well). You might use a small piece of bait on your jig to improve your chances, but trout will bite a bare lure as well.
- Move around. If you don’t catch anything after a while, cut some more holes and try some different spots.
Categories