F&W Biologist Lists
Local Fishing Sites

Casting a line is always a favorite summer time activity and this year area anglers have the opportunity to catch bigger fish at four local water areas and area streams, thanks to a stocking program by the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department. This year, McIntosh Pond in Royalton, Sunset Lake in Brookfield, Miller Pond in Strafford, and Rood Pond in Willamstown-Brookfield have been stocked with "trophy trout," year-old brown and rainbow trout.

We asked local F&W fish biologist Rich Kirn of the Roxbury Hatchery to describe some local fishing spots and here is his report.

Baker Pond, Brookfield: Supports largemouth bass, pumpkinseed, yellow perch and brown bullhead. Annually stocked with yearling (8-10 inches) and two-year old brook trout (12-14 inches). F&W access area has a boat launch and shoreline fishing.

Kirn notes that special largemouth bass regulations at Baker Pond set a limit of 10 bass/day, of which only one can be more than 12 inches. All bass between 10-12 inches must be released.

Sunset Lake, Brookfield: Supports largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, and yellow perch. Annually stocked with yearling brook and rainbow trout, and two-year-old brook and rainbow trout. Public fishing available from Floating Bridge.

Lake Fairlee, Fairlee: Largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, yellow perch, brown bullhead, pumpkinseed, rock bass and rainbow smelt. Annually stocked with yearling brown trout and rainbow trout, which can grow to large sizes. F&W Access area provides a boat launch.

Lake Morey, Fairlee: Largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, northern pike, yellow perch, brown bullhead, pumpkinseed, bluegill and rock bass. F&W Access area provides a boat launch. Special largemouth bass regulations: 14-inch minimum length.

Miller Pond, Strafford: Largemouth bass, pumpkinseed and bluegill. Annually stocked with yearling and two-year-old brook and rainbow trout. F&W Access area provides a boat launch and shoreline fishing.

McIntosh Pond, Bethel: Annually stocked with yearling and two-year-old brook and rainbow trout. F&W Access area provides a boat launch and shoreline fishing.

The White River (mainstem) supports a mix of wild (naturally reproduced) and stocked trout. Upper reaches (Granville Hancock) are supplemented with hatchery-reared yearling brook trout; Hancock-Stockbridge receive yearling rainbow trout; Bethel-Hartford receive yearling rainbow trout.

A 3.3-mile stretch of the White in Stockbridge, from Lilliesville Brook to Cleveland Brook, is managed a wild trout fishery with special fishing regulations (one trout per day, 18-inch minimum length; artificial flies and lures only). In addition, spawning streams (Locust Creek and Lilliesville Brook) are closed to fishing until June 1 to protect spawning rainbow trout.

The mid–to-lower White River, Stockbridge to Sharon, is known for good wild rainbow trout population with larger fish exceeding 20 inches. Smaller tributaries will support a combination of wild brook, brown and/or rainbow trout, with wild native brook trout found in higher elevations.

Good smallmouth bass fishing opportunities also exist in the lower river, Royalton to Hartford.

The First and Second Branches of the White are supplemented with yearling rainbow trout in the mainstem; with good wild native brook trout in upper reaches and in tributaries.

The Third Branch is supplemented with yearling brook trout (Roxbury-Randolph) and brown trout (Randolph-Bethel) in mainstem; good wild native brook trout and rainbow trout in upper reaches and in tributaries.

Note: Wild trout are the result of natural reproduction not hatchery stockings.