Don’t put away your fishing rod just yet.  According to MassWildlife over 71,000 rainbow trout have been allocated to be stocked statewide and the Western District will surely get its share.  They average over 12 inches in length.  Due to favorable water temperatures and flow levels, trout stocking in much of the state began the week of September 24 and was completed last week.

The following local bodies of water were scheduled for stocking this fall:  Ashfield Lake, North Pond, Windsor Lake, Lake Buel, Windsor Pond, Upper Highland Lake, Otis Reservoir,  Big Pond, Stockbridge Bowl, Norwich Lake,  Pontoosuc Lake, Deerfield River, Goose Pond, Onota Lake, Westfield River (East Branch) – Chesterfield Gorge,  Richmond Pond, Laurel Lake and Littleville Lake.  A complete listing of trout waters stocked is posted at: www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/recreation/fishing/trout/trout_stocked_waters.htm.   Water bodies stocked in the fall are underlined.

But wait, there is more good news!  Jeff Mosher, USFWS Biological Technician working out of the Berkshire National Fish Hatchery in Hartsville/New Marlboro reported that last week he stocked the Williams, Green, and Konkapot Rivers as well as Lake Garfield, and Lake Buel with 10 inch pre-spawned native brook trout.   

Beautiful fall foliage and waters full of feisty trout.  It doesn’t get any better than this. *****