Hey all, this seems like an awesome board with a wealth of information and some nice dudes unlike some forums I've been around...glad to be a part of it! I moved to Albany this winter from western PA for an internship. I started fly fishing last spring, so I can cast a line and read water/fish somewhat effectively. I have a couple questions pertaining to fishing in the capital region....
-90+% of the trout streams I have fished in PA are strictly put and take fisheries (due to warm water temps and high angler pressure) with little to no holdover fish to be had. I realize if I head to the 'dacks or catskills I can find some older trout, but what can I expect as far as holdovers/natural repro. fish for some of the creeks (kinderhook, tackawasick, Poestenkill...etc) that are in after-work-fishing-session driving distance from Albany? Do the feeder streams to these larger creeks support trout as well?
-The public fishing rights maps on the NYDEC seem to only cover a very small portion of the stocked streams in the area. Is the rest of the stream pretty much off limits, or can you park somewhere reasonable, ask permission for access from the landowner( if it is clear who's land you are crossing over) and carry on as usual?
-What about the streams that have no public fishing rights maps, yet are stocked by the DEC? This can't mean the public has no access whatsoever to the stream otherwise they wouldn't stock it. It's confusing to me because in PA it is pretty much a free-for-all when it comes to stream access... for the first few weeks of trout the landowners have pretty much come to expect the slobs to show up, park in their front yard, walk through without asking, and leave their bait containers/eagle claw and cigarette packs on the banks.
-In terms of stocking....does NY float stock or just dump buckets of fish at the access points and bridges as they do in PA?
Sorry for the long winded questions, didn't want to make them too broad. Look forward to contributing to the board this spring/summer. Less than 2 months till the opener, hoping for some warm weather so the mountain streams to the north and south are good to go by may!
-90+% of the trout streams I have fished in PA are strictly put and take fisheries (due to warm water temps and high angler pressure) with little to no holdover fish to be had. I realize if I head to the 'dacks or catskills I can find some older trout, but what can I expect as far as holdovers/natural repro. fish for some of the creeks (kinderhook, tackawasick, Poestenkill...etc) that are in after-work-fishing-session driving distance from Albany? Do the feeder streams to these larger creeks support trout as well?
-The public fishing rights maps on the NYDEC seem to only cover a very small portion of the stocked streams in the area. Is the rest of the stream pretty much off limits, or can you park somewhere reasonable, ask permission for access from the landowner( if it is clear who's land you are crossing over) and carry on as usual?
-What about the streams that have no public fishing rights maps, yet are stocked by the DEC? This can't mean the public has no access whatsoever to the stream otherwise they wouldn't stock it. It's confusing to me because in PA it is pretty much a free-for-all when it comes to stream access... for the first few weeks of trout the landowners have pretty much come to expect the slobs to show up, park in their front yard, walk through without asking, and leave their bait containers/eagle claw and cigarette packs on the banks.
-In terms of stocking....does NY float stock or just dump buckets of fish at the access points and bridges as they do in PA?
Sorry for the long winded questions, didn't want to make them too broad. Look forward to contributing to the board this spring/summer. Less than 2 months till the opener, hoping for some warm weather so the mountain streams to the north and south are good to go by may!
