Fly Fishing for Wild Trout in New Jersey

For those of you unfamiliar with the Garden State, you should know that it maintains incredible geological diversity. In the south, the acidic Pine Barrens are home to rare species of fish, flowers, animals, and Devils. The east coast of the state forms part of the Atlantic seaboard, and boasts beautiful beaches, wonderful bird migrations (especially at Cape May), and Snooki's hair. The western part of the state, however, is part of the Delaware River/Delaware Bay watershed, and features plenty of bald eagles, osprey, and peregrine falcon. But the part of the state I most like to fly fish is located north of Interstate 78 and west of Interstate 287. This section of New Jersey is situated in the foothills and mountains of the Appalachians, and contains enough elevation and cooler temperatures to keep wild trout alive year-round.

A few weeks ago, I fished a number of these wild trout streams, as well as the special regulation area of the Musconetcong at Point Mountain. I first went to Rockaway Creek, one of the few wild brown trout streams in NJ. It was a beautiful April day, I caught 6 wild trout on a small wooly bugger streamer, and Jackie found some jack-in-the-pulpit flowers. We next moved on to Teetertown Brook, a wild brook trout stream located a few miles away. It began to rain, so Jackie stayed in the car while I landed 5 more wild fish. At the end of the ride, I stopped briefly at Hickory Run and Little Brook, catching one wild brook out of the latter stream. A few days later, we drove to the Musconetcong. I caught two stocked brook trout in about 45 minutes before it started down-pouring.

It was nice to catch some wild trout on the fly so early in the season.

Image #1 - Jack-in-the-pulpit
Image #2 - Wild brown from Rockaway Creek

Overall Total: 48

River Breakdown:
McMichaels Creek - 10 (5 Stocked Brook, 5 Stocked Rainbow)
Paulinskill River - 7 (7 Stocked Brook)
Rockaway Creek - 6 (5 Wild Brown, 1 Wild Brook)
Teetertown Brook - (5 Wild Brook)
Penns Creek - 4 (4 Wild Brown)
Sevenmile Creek -4 (3 Wild Rainbow, 1 Steelhead)
Brodhead Creek - 2 (2 Stocked Rainbow)
Bushkill Creek (Pike County) - 2 (2 Stocked Brown)
Musconetcong River - 2 (2 Stocked Brook)
Raritan River, South Branch - 2 (2 Stocked Brown)
Bushkill Creek (Northampton County) - 1 (1 Stocked Rainbow)
Little Brook -1 (1 Wild Brook)
Marshalls Creek - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Twentymile Creek - 1 (1 Steelhead)

Species Breakdown:
Brook Trout - 22
Stocked - 14
Wild - 8

Rainbow Trout - 13
Stocked - 8
Wild - 3
Steelhead - 2

Brown Trout - 13
Wild - 9
Stocked - 4

Stocked Trout - 26
Wild Trout - 20
Lake Erie Trout - 2

Trout 15+ inches - 3

Fly Breakdown:
Bead-head Black Wooly Bugger, size 10 - 7 (4 Stocked Rainbow, 2 Stocked Brook, 1 Stocked Brown)
Bead-head Olive Wooly Bugger, size 14 - 7 (5 Wild Brown, 2 Wild Brook)
Bead-head Pheasant Tail Nymph, size 14 - 5 (3 Wild Rainbow, 2 Steelhead, 1 Stocked Brown)
Bead-head Black Wooly Bugger, size 14 - 3 (3 Wild Brook)
Bead-head Red Wooly Bugger, size 14 - 3 (3 Wild Brook)
Bead-head Black Wooly Bugger, size 8 - 2 (2 Stocked Brook)
Bead-head Golden Stonefly Nymph, size 10 - 1 (1 Steelhead)
Bead-head Green Wooly Bugger, size 10 - 1 (1 Stocked Brown)
Black Caddis, size 16 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)
Tan Caddis, size 16 - 1 (1 Stocked Brown)

Angling Breakdown:
Fly Fishing Rod - 31 (8 Wild Brook, 6 Wild Brown, 4 Stocked Brook, 4 Stocked Brown, 4 Stocked Rainbow, 3 Wild Rainbow, 2 Steelhead Rainbow)
Spinning Rod - 17 (10 Stocked Brook, 4 Stocked Rainbow, 3 Wild Brown)

State Breakdown:
Pennsylvania - 25
New Jersey - 23

Fly Fishing New Jersey's Rockaway Creek, Hickory Run, and Little Brook

Last Monday I decided I needed to catch a few wild trout after hooking into all those stocked Massachusetts fish. The Rockaway brown I caught earlier in the year was perhaps the most beautiful fish I've landed in a long time. A reprise seemed appropriate, so I drove north. The river, however, is somewhat tricky to fly fish. Indeed, its big boulders create deep, short holes that prohibit great presentation. These spots also provide trout with ample hiding space. In addition, the Rockaway's clear water enables fish to detect predators (including me) with relative ease. I've had success standing on top of the river's large mid-stream rocks. This allows me to penetrate the aforementioned holes without invading the trout lies. In the end, I caught three more wild brown trout (one on a brown bead-head wooly bugger, one on an olive wooly bugger, and one on a lure).

After my time at Rockaway, I headed to Hickory Run. As I've mentioned in previous posts, Hickory Run is a tributary of the South Branch of the Raritan River. You can access this small wild brook trout fishery by parking near/along Route 513 near Califon. I would, however, advise any enterprising anglers to wait until some of the riparian vegetation will begin to disappear this fall as the stream was overgrown and practically impenetrable. Nevertheless, I caught one wild brook trout on the wooly bugger. After catching that small trout, I followed the stream to its confluence with the South Branch. I then noticed a nearby stream that emptied into the Raritan. I walked over and fished it. Although the streamside conditions were extremely tight, I caught two wild brook trout on a Panther Martin spinner. I later found out that the run is called Little Brook. Feeling content with six wild New Jersey trout, I drove back home and prepared for a busy work week.


Image #1 - Wild brown from the Rockaway
Image #2 - Milkweed in bloom
Image #3 - Overgrown Little Brook

Overall Total: 99

River Breakdown:

Teetertown Brook - 18 (18 Wild Brook)
Raritan River, South Branch - 12 (8 Stocked Rainbow, 3 Stocked Brown, 1 Wild Brown)
Marshalls Creek - 8 (8 Wild Brook)
Swift River - 6 (3 Stocked Rainbow, 2 Stocked Brown, 1 Stocked Brook)
Elk Creek - 5 (5 Wild Brown)
Elk River - 5 (3 Stocked Rainbow, 1 Stocked Brook, 1 Wild Brown)
Penns Creek - 5 (5 Wild Brown)
Spring Creek - 5 (4 Wild Rainbow, 1 Wild Brown)
Stony Brook - 4 (4 Stocked Rainbow)
Paulinskill River - 4 (2 Stocked Brook, 2 Stocked Rainbow)
Rockaway Creek - 4 (4 Wild Brown)
Bushkill Creek - 3 (2 Stocked Rainbow, 1 Stocked Brown)
Fishing Creek - 3 (3 Wild Brown)
Lost Cove Creek - 3 (2 Wild Rainbow, 1 Wild Brook)
Brodhead Creek - 2 (1 Stocked Brown, 1 Wild Brown)
Hickory Run - 2 (2 Wild Brook)
Little Brook - 2 (2 Wild Brook)
Roaring Run - 2 (2 Wild Brook)
Little Glade Creek - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Mill Creek - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Mud Run - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Poplar Run - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Trout Brook - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
White Deer Creek - 1 (1 Stocked Brook)


Species Breakdown:

Brook Trout - 42
Wild - 37
Stocked - 5

Brown Trout - 30
Wild - 22
Stocked - 8

Rainbow Trout - 27
Stocked - 21
Wild - 6


Wild Trout - 65
Stocked Trout - 34


Trout 15+ Inches: 8


Fly Breakdown:
Olive Wooly Bugger, size 14 - 22 (21 Wild Brook, 1 Wild Brown)
Bead-head Pheasant Tail Nymph, size 14 - 10 (8 Stocked Rainbow, 2 Stocked Brown)
Green Weenie, size 12 - 6 (3 Stocked Rainbow, 2 Stocked Brown, 1 Stocked Brook)
Tan Caddis, size 14 - 5 (5 Wild Brown)
Sulphur dun, size 16 - 4 (2 Wild Rainbow, 1 Wild Brook, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Bead-head Copper John Nymph, size 16 - 3 (3 Wild Brook)
Black Caddis, size 14 - 3 (2 Wild Brown, 1 Stocked Brown)
Gummy Stonefly, size 14 - 3 (2 Wild Brown, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Bead-head Black Stonefly Nymph, size 10 - 2 (1 Stocked Brown, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Brown Stonefly nymph, size 10 - 2 (1 Stocked Brook, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Green Weenie, size 14 - 2 (2 Wild Rainbow)
Bead-head Green Weenie, size 14 - 1 (1 Stocked Brook)
Bead-head Hare's Ear Nymph, size 14 - 1 (1 Stocked Rainbow)
Brown Wooly Bugger, size 14 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)
Blue Quill, size 16 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)
Blue Winged Olive, size 18 - 1 (1 Wild Rainbow)
Golden Stonefly, size 8 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)
Scud, size 16 - 1 (1 Wild Rainbow)
Sulphur dun, size 14 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)


Angling Breakdown:

Fly Fishing Rod - 70 (25 Wild Brook, 16 Stocked Rainbow, 14 Wild Brown, 6 Wild Rainbow, 6 Stocked Brown, 3 Stocked Brook)
Spinning Rod - 29 (12 Wild Brook, 8 Wild Brown, 5 Stocked Rainbow, 2 Stocked Brook, 2 Stocked Brown)


State Breakdown:
New Jersey - 47
Pennsylvania - 35
North Carolina - 9
Massachusetts - 6
Virginia - 2

Fly Fishing Rockaway Creek

Today, Jackie and I stopped at Rockaway Creek on our way to see my family in Hackettstown. Last week I had zero success fishing this cold and clear mountain stream. Today, however, I caught a 12 inch wild brown trout on a size 14 gummy stonefly nymph. It was a beautiful fish and was easily one of the largest wild trout I've caught in New Jersey. Rockaway is a wonderful stream; the spot, though, will remain a relative secret.

I am always struck by the level of achievement I feel after catching only one wild trout. There's something entrancing about landing a wily native, or a smart wild fish. It's not that these types of trout are necessarily better than their stocked counterparts; instead, catching a wild trout in New Jersey encourages fantasies about what eastern trout fishing was like before the advent of highway systems, the implementation of planned suburbs, and the popularity of detrimental stocking programs. For me, catching one 12 inch wild brown means more than landing a dozen 15 inch stocked fish.

Image #1 - Rockaway Creek
Image #2 - Wild brown trout from Rockaway Creek


Overall Total: 85

River Breakdown:

Teetertown Brook - 17 (17 Wild Brook)
Raritan River, South Branch - 12 (8 Stocked Rainbow, 3 Stocked Brown, 1 Wild Brown)
Marshalls Creek - 8 (8 Wild Brook)
Elk Creek - 5 (5 Wild Brown)
Elk River - 5 (3 Stocked Rainbow, 1 Stocked Brook, 1 Wild Brown)
Penns Creek - 5 (5 Wild Brown)
Spring Creek - 5 (4 Wild Rainbow, 1 Wild Brown)
Stony Brook - 4 (4 Stocked Rainbow)
Paulinskill River - 4 (2 Stocked Brook, 2 Stocked Rainbow)
Bushkill Creek - 3 (2 Stocked Rainbow, 1 Stocked Brown)
Fishing Creek - 3 (3 Wild Brown)
Lost Cove Creek - 3 (2 Wild Rainbow, 1 Wild Brook)
Brodhead Creek - 2 (1 Stocked Brown, 1 Wild Brown)
Roaring Run - 2 (2 Wild Brook)
Hickory Run - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Little Glade Creek - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Mill Creek - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Mud Run - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Poplar Run - 1 (1 Wild Brook)
Rockaway Creek - (1 Wild Brown)
White Deer Creek - 1 (1 Stocked Brook)


Species Breakdown:

Brook Trout - 36
Wild - 32
Stocked - 4

Brown Trout - 25
Wild - 19
Stocked - 6

Rainbow Trout - 24
Stocked - 18
Wild - 6


Wild Trout - 57
Stocked Trout - 28


Trout 15+ Inches: 4


Fly Breakdown:
Olive Wooly Bugger, size 14 - 19 (19 Wild Brook)
Bead-head Pheasant Tail Nymph, size 14 - 10 (8 Stocked Rainbow, 2 Stocked Brown)
Tan Caddis, size 14 - 5 (5 Wild Brown)
Sulphur dun, size 16 - 4 (2 Wild Rainbow, 1 Wild Brook, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Bead-head Copper John Nymph, size 16 - 3 (3 Wild Brook)
Black Caddis, size 14 - 3 (2 Wild Brown, 1 Stocked Brown)
Gummy Stonefly, size 14 - 3 (2 Wild Brown, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Bead-head Black Stonefly Nymph, size 10 - 2 (1 Stocked Brown, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Brown Stonefly nymph, size 10 - 2 (1 Stocked Brook, 1 Stocked Rainbow)
Green Weenie, size 14 - 2 (2 Wild Rainbow)
Bead-head Green Weenie, size 14 - 1 (1 Stocked Brook)
Bead-head Hare's Ear Nymph, size 14 - 1 (1 Stocked Rainbow)
Blue Quill, size 16 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)
Blue Winged Olive, size 18 - 1 (1 Wild Rainbow)
Golden Stonefly, size 8 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)
Scud, size 16 - 1 (1 Wild Rainbow)
Sulphur dun, size 14 - 1 (1 Wild Brown)


Angling Breakdown:

Fly Fishing Rod - 60 (23 Wild Brook, 13 Stocked Rainbow, 12 Wild Brown, 6 Wild Rainbow, 4 Stocked Brown, 2 Stocked Brook)
Spinning Rod - 25 (9 Wild Brook, 7 Wild Brown, 5 Stocked Rainbow, 2 Stocked Brook, 2 Stocked Brown)


State Breakdown:
New Jersey - 39
Pennsylvania - 35
North Carolina - 9
Virginia - 2