The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission will open approximately 1,000 miles of Hatchery Supported Trout Waters at 7 a.m. on April 6. Hatchery Supported Trout Waters, which are marked by green-and-white signs, have been closed since Feb. 28 for stocking.
Courtesy photo
RALEIGH — The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission will be opening approximately 1,000 miles of Hatchery Supported Trout Waters at 7 a.m. on April 6.
The season will run through Feb. 28, 2025.
Hatchery Supported Trout Waters, which are marked by green-and-white signs, have been closed since Feb. 28 for stocking. Most trout are stocked from April through June, with a few streams selectively stocked in July. Overall, staff will stock over 600,000 trout in hatchery-supported waters — 96 percent of which will average 10 inches in length, with the other 4 percent exceeding 14 inches in length.
The Wildlife Commission has posted the full Hatchery Supported Trout Waters stocking schedule on its website to give trout anglers opportunities to plan fishing trips in advance. To aid in ease of searchability, the schedule is searchable by county and month, also providing information on what days each water is being stocked.
Hatchery Supported Trout Waters are open to public fishing; however, many of those miles are privately owned so officials with the Wildlife Commission urge anglers to respect the property they are fishing on and cautions that landowners can take away access if they feel their property is being misused.
Anglers can help prevent the loss of public access to fishing by respecting private property and landowners at all times, removing all trash and litter from fishing and parking areas, parking only in designated areas and leaving driveways open for traffic, closing and/or locking gates after use.
A complete list of all Hatchery Supported Trout Waters, as well as trout maps, the complete stocking schedule, and daily stocking updates on Hatchery Supported Trout Waters, are available when you visit the Wildlife Commission’s trout fishing page.
Trout stocking will not be impacted in 2024, however, the Bobby N. Setzer State fish Hatchery is scheduled to undergo major renovations beginning in 2025.
Setzer currently produces over 75% of trout for the agency’s trout stocking program. It is forecasted that with Setzer temporarily out of commission, there will be a reduction in trout stockings during the 2025, 2026, and potentially 2027 trout stocking seasons.
The public will continue to be updated during this process, ensuring continuity in the sport of trout fishing, and that the sport continues in North Carolina for future generations.