Spring is here, the weather is (hopefully) about to warm up, and trout season is right around the corner.

April 14th is the statewide opener for trout and anglers can begin fishing at 8:00 am.

Many local streams and ponds in the area are stocked with brook, brown, rainbow trout, palominos, or a mix.

Some local streams that get stocked are sections of the little Juniata, Vanscoyoc Run, Bell’s Gap run just below the Bellwood reservoir, and Bald Eagle Creek in confluence with California Hollow Run.

These streams are all stocked by the Pleasant Gap Hatchery. Some streams were stocked at the beginning of April and other stocking dates are spread out through April and May. To see the complete fish commission stocking schedules, click HERE.

Once you choose your fishing spot, there are a variety of other choices you have to make, such as choosing tackle and bait.

Are you going to use live bait or spinners?

Live bait options include nightcrawlers, meal worms, wax worms, butter worms, red worms, and minnows.

I prefer wax worms over other worms because they’re cheaper and I’ve caught the most fish using them.

Also, if you are using live bait, are you going to fish on the bottom or use a bobber and fish on the top? Depending on the situation, I use, and catch fish, with both.

Spinners are a very good option for trout and are best to use when it is sunny because the sun reflects off the metal and attract the fish.

Kastmaster and Roostertail are the two main spinner options that most people use. The color and type of spinner you use will depend on the weather and clarity of the water.

Another thing that anglers need to pay attention to is whether it is windy or not.

If it is windy, you should fish on the bottom so your bait stays in one spot and isn’t getting blown across the water.

If it’s calm, then the choice is yours.

If you aren’t very experienced and can’t tell if a fish is biting without the use of a bobber, then don’t fish on the bottom and stick with the bobber.

With first day temperatures forecast for the seventies, no matter what how many fish you land it should be a good first day of trout season.