North Carolina Delayed Harvest Season Underway
leah kirk
The Fishing Wire reports that North Carolina’s Delayed Harvest Trout (DH) Waters open today (Oct 1). DH Trout Water's regulations apply to 36 trout waters in 20 western North Carolina counties. Under DH regulations, no trout can be harvested or possessed from these waters between Oct. 1 and one half-hour after sunset on June 2, 2017.
DH waters are stocked from fall through spring with high densities of trout to increase angling success. North Carolina’s DH waters are posted with diamond-shaped, black-and-white signs informing anglers of these catch-and-release trout fishing streams.
No natural bait may be possessed, and anglers can fish only with artificial lures with one single hook. An artificial lure is defined as a fishing lure that neither contains nor has been treated with any substance that attracts fish by the sense of taste or smell. For info on DH waters, stocking dates, information on regulations and trout fishing maps, visit the Commission's trout fishing page at http://www.ncwildlife.org/Learning/Species/Fish/Trout/Trout-Fishing
The community of Todd has joined North Carolina’s Heritage Trout Waters Program which was established in 2008 to promote trout fishing tourism. In Todd, located in Ashe County, a half a mile of trout stream on the South Fork New River is now classified as the community of Todd Mountain Heritage Trout Water. The section of stream includes Todd Island Park, an island located midstream in the river channel. The island is a half a mile long with a fishable channel on each side.
Fishing these stream sections requires a $5 Mountain Heritage Trout Water license that is valid for three consecutive days (only for the portions of streams designated as Mountain Heritage Trout Waters, which are clearly marked with green and black signs). Anglers holding valid/current North Carolina resident or non-resident North Carolina fishing licenses may fish Mountain Heritage Trout Waters without purchasing the special license.