With trout season now in full swing, the unmistakable blue NJ Fish and Wildlife truck made a stop last week at Rosedale Lake, where hundreds of rainbow trout were heaved into the water as part of the state’s ongoing spring stocking program.
Each fish—raised at the Pequest Trout Hatchery in Warren County—took a short flight from net to lake, a sudden splash that serves to jolt them awake and get them swimming. Though no anglers were on shore waiting this time, an osprey circled overhead, and a few cormorants drifted nearby, seemingly familiar with the truck’s promise of easy pickings.
But this wasn’t just another routine stocking run. For the first time, members of the Ernest Schwiebert Chapter of Trout Unlimited joined the effort, helping the Fish and Wildlife crew distribute fish not only at Rosedale Lake, but also at multiple locations along Stony Brook.
After the initial release in the lake, Trout Unlimited members Rick Shahbender, Tom Jones, and Ralph Koerner had the Stony Brook designated fish dropped in buckets in the parking lot. Then they carried the fish to spots along the river in buckets they had brought from home. Then Koerner put on waders and walked nearly a mile downstream in the river depositing fish along the way. Their goal: get the trout into deeper pools and more varied habitat—places they know from years of experience are better for both the fish and the fishermen.
“This has been a dream of mine for years,” said Koerner, who serves as the chapter’s treasurer. “It’s better for the fish and the fishing to get them into better holes.”
According to NJ Fish and Wildlife, trout tend to stay close to their release sites at first, having never known anything but the hatchery tanks. The local anglers’ efforts give the fish a head start in spreading out—and create more opportunities for anglers along the stream.
The Rosedale and Stony Brook stockings are part of a larger program that will see more than 570,000 rainbow trout stocked statewide through May 31. In Mercer County alone, waters including Colonial Lake, Assunpink Creek, and the D&R Canal will continue to receive fish on a rolling schedule. The spring effort is followed by additional stockings in the fall and winter, offering nearly year-round trout fishing in New Jersey.
Members of Trout Unlimited say they plan to continue meeting up with the truck over the coming weeks, bringing nets, buckets, and years of fishing knowledge to help distribute trout more evenly throughout the region’s streams.
The group is part of the Ernest Schwiebert Chapter of Trout Unlimited, named in honor of the influential author, conservationist, and fisheries biologist who helped found the national organization. The chapter partners with local groups like The Watershed Institute and the D&R Greenway Land Trust on stream restoration and educational outreach, reflecting a commitment to stewardship that goes beyond the water’s edge. Rick Shahbender, now president of the chapter, was on hand helping carry fish into Stony Brook.
As the trout truck rumbled off to its next stop, the volunteers grabbed their buckets and raced fish into the stream, one splash at a time. Today wasn’t about catching fish for themselves—it was about giving the trout a better start and creating a more rewarding season for anglers all along the brook.
photos by Seth Siditsky
