Big turnout for trout stocking, Fish Commission predicts excellent opening day

An officer with the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is predicting an excellent opening day of trout season April 18.

A bounty of volunteers and good weather Thursday and Friday made it easy to widely distribute four truckloads of trout in Bull Creek in Tarentum, Deer Creek in Indiana Township and other areas.

“It’s going to be a great season,” commission Sgt. Mike Walsh said. “The water levels are great, and we were able to distribute the fish well.”

The water temperature of Deer Creek on Friday afternoon was a perfect 44 degrees, according to Walsh, adding to the excitement and anticipation of opening day.

Close to 40 volunteers, including those from Tri-County Trout club, and area anglers showed up in the chilly but manageable weather at Emmerling Park in Indiana Township.

The waterways were free of ice, which made it easier for volunteers, clad in waders, to walk Deer Creek to float stock and pour in buckets of rainbow, brown and golden rainbow trout.

Volunteer finds the task fulfilling

For Tom Wesoloski, 47, of Harrison, a volunteer deputy for the Fish and Boat Commission, fish stocking has been a duty since 1988, and it’s been a fulfilling duty, he said. Oftentimes, he will help stock the fish earlier in the day, then go to his full-time job working for the railroad.

“It’s fulfilling,” he said, “to give others the opportunity to fish.”

The Fish and Boat Commission stocks 3.2 million adult trout in 707 streams and 130 lakes open to public angling annually. That includes 2.2 million rainbow trout, 660,000 brown trout and 360,000 brook trout.

The average size of the trout produced for stocking is 11 inches long, according to the commission.

To learn more about fish stocking locations and dates, consult the Fish and Boat Commission’s website at fishandboat.com.