Vermont Angler Science Reporting

Sterling Pond is a small, high elevation lake in Cambridge located along the Long Trail near the summit of Sterling Mountain at Smugglers’ Notch Resort. The pond is stocked with brook trout each spring that take a chair lift ride up the mountain before being released. Anglers can best access the pond though by hiking 2.1 miles roundtrip along the Sterling Pond Trail which begins at Smugglers Notch on Rt 108.

Anglers have recently shared photos of large brook trout being caught in Sterling Pond, many of which have even been submitted to the Master Angler program! These large fish show that Sterling Pond has the conditions to allow brook trout to survive and grow for multiple years. However, its unclear whether conditions allow brook trout to spawn and contribute to the population. While wild brook trout are abundant in streams throughout Vermont, wild brook trout in ponds are quite rare. Since 2023, all brook trout stocked into Sterling Pond have had a clipped, or missing, adipose fin to help us determine if wild brook trout are present. Catching a brook trout with an intact adipose fin would indicate wild reproduction is occurring.

Anglers can help us with this study by submitting information about all brook trout they catch from Sterling Pond. Please include the length of fish as well as photos that clearly show the adipose fin so we can determine if it has been clipped or not. These results will help us determine how to best manage this population and provide quality fishing opportunities.

The Willoughby, Barton, and Black Rivers serve as spawning and nursery habitat for steelhead rainbow trout that spend most of their lives in Lake Memphremagog. When these large adult fish return from the lake to spawn, they provide a popular fishing opportunity in these rivers from April through mid- June. Since the late 1980’s, VFWD has been supplementing natural reproduction in these rivers by stocking hatchery-reared steelhead rainbow trout smolts. The adipose fin is removed from each stocked smolt to differentiate them from the wild, stream-born fish.

Our goal is to maintain a high-quality fishing experience for steelhead rainbow trout that is primarily maintained by natural reproduction. Since the 1990’s, we have been monitoring the relative contribution of stocked and wild fish caught by anglers in the Memphremagog tributaries. These data help us to evaluate the performance of stocked fish and the success of natural reproduction.

Anglers can help with this study by providing fish lengths and fin clip information. In general, the only fin that should be missing from stocked fish is the adipose fin. A photo that shows the adipose fin, or lack thereof, is very helpful. The fish’s length is also important to confirm that it is an adult and not a recently stocked smolt.

The Clyde River serves as feeding and spawning habitat for landlocked Atlantic salmon that spend most of their lives in Lake Memphremagog. When these fish return to the river in spring to feed and in the fall to spawn, they provide a very unique and popular fishing opportunity. The hydropower company that operates the dam in Newport City, also operates a trap-and-truck facility in the fall. This facility moves salmon to more spawning and juvenile rearing habitat upstream of the Clyde Pond dam.

Anglers can provide length data to help us monitor the size structure of salmon in the population. Size structure data can be useful in evaluating stocking and regulations. By comparing size structure observed by anglers with that observed at the trap-and-truck facility, we can determine whether the trap-and-truck facility is equally effective for all sizes of salmon.

The Muskellunge (Muskie) is an important, native, apex predator in Lake Champlain’s fish community. The original native population disappeared from the Missisquoi River in the 1970s, and in 2008 the department began a restoration effort to bring this native species back to the lake, as well as to create a unique recreational fishing opportunity for Vermont anglers that has not been available for over 40 years. Just over 66,000 fingerling Muskie have been stocked into Missisquoi River above and below Swanton Dam, and in Missisquoi Bay since 2008. Department surveys and angler reports suggest that stocking has been largely successful, with large, mature fish in the high 40 to low 50-inch range being caught in surveys and by anglers. A small amount of wild juvenile Muskie have also been collected recently in department surveys, indicating the stocked population has started reproducing successfully. A separate stocking program in the 1980’s created a reproducing population of Muskie in Otter Creek above and below the Vergennes Dam that still exists and provides a fishery to this day.

Muskies are low-density predators (even in healthy populations), making it difficult for biologists to collect quality population data using standard fisheries assessment and survey techniques. Across the range of Muskellunge in North America, biologists frequently incorporate Angler Science Reporting (volunteer angler diary or fishing log tools) to collect important information from angler’s catches.

If you catch a Muskie, we encourage you to report your fish using our new Angler Science Reporting tool. This data will help us better understand the success of our Muskie restoration effort and the developing fishery it has created. Data will be used to monitor the geographic distribution and abundance of the population as it grows, learn about seasonal movements and potential spawning sites, and help better understand the growth and size structure of individuals within the population – an indicator of fish health.

Critical data to be collected will include:

1. Date of catch
2. Location of catch
3. Length of fish, to ¼ inch
4. Weight of fish, if it can be weighed safely while minimizing fish damage or injury. Do not hang a muskie directly from the hook of a scale. Weigh it in a fish cradle or large frame landing net.
5. Two photos:
   1. a clear broadside photo of the fish
   2. a close up of the vent for sex identification

The Dog River has long been considered one of Vermont’s premier wild trout streams with a reputation for abundant wild rainbow trout and large brown trout. Electrofishing and angler surveys conducted through the 1990s confirmed this reputation with observations of high trout densities, excellent natural reproduction, good growth rates and angler catch rates. Because of this, all stocking in the Dog River and its tributaries was discontinued in 1992. Despite these robust populations, a substantial decline has been observed since the mid-2000s, and in 2010 a no harvest regulation was put in place below Northfield Falls to the confluence with the Winooski River to help limit angler impacts. Due to low fishing pressure and challenging deep pool, shallow riffle habitat, traditional fisheries sampling methods have been difficult to implement, especially after recent floods.

Anglers can help us improve our understanding of the status of wild trout populations in the Dog River by providing a location, picture, and length of any trout caught. Entries will not be shared publicly without permission.

The Stevens Branch of the Winooski River was recently hit by multiple catastrophic floods. Traditionally, this river was known to hold abundant wild trout populations, however, recent fisheries data is limited, and habitat quality has declined. A location, picture and length of any trout caught will help us assess how flooding has impacted these populations and whether future trout stocking may be warranted to provide additional angling opportunity. Entries will not be shared publicly without permission.