As you read through the stocking tables, please note that many lakes are open on a year­round season or open on March 1, and are stocked as early as February. While it may be too late this year to take advantage of this knowledge, stocking schedules are fairly consistent from year-to-year, so you may be able to get in some good early fishing next year.

Studies have shown that trout tend to stay in the top three to five feet of the water the first week or so after being stocked. This makes them easy prey for cormorants and other avian predators, which take a significant bite out of our stocking efforts each year. So your best chance for success may come within the first couple of weeks after fish are stocked. Also, lots of anglers on the water may disrupt feeding birds and thus may improve fishing later in the season.

Because fish tend to remain shallow for a while after being stocked, fishing on the bottom may not be as productive early in the season as it will later. Try shallow trolling with small lures, flies or spinner­and­bait combinations. New "light" trolling lures allow you to fish with spinner­and­bait rigs without the heavy pull you had to put up with in the past. If fishing from the shore, use a float to keep your bait up in the feeding zone.

Later in the season the trout tend to go deeper, especially as the lake surface warms in the late spring and summer. This is the time to try fishing on or just off the bottom, using floating paste­type baits or other buoyant baits. Fish also start to feed on more natural food, so artificial baits may lose some of their fish-attracting powers. When this happens, try natural baits such as worms or eggs, or flies and lures that imitate natural trout forage. This would also be the case in lakes managed primarily with fry plants.