Home » Opening Day of Trout Season Still Matters

Opening Day of Trout Season Still Matters

In modern fly fishing, the idea of an opening day of trout season doesn’t hold the same kind of mystique that it did in past generations. With many catch and release waters being open year-round, the calendar doesn’t dictate if one can fish. The conclusion to fish or not depends more on personal choice. Weather, not law, becomes a deciding factor. For the ardent angler, conservation concerns such as spawning seasons or water temperatures might be the only limiting variables.

Season-free trout fishing is a relatively new phenomenon. The purposes behind closing and opening different waters is intriguing. Learning why different states across the country adapted statutes for reasons of conservation and economics is valuable for understanding the history of resource management.

Perhaps more compelling is the change in culture. In past years a certain day in April held a special allure. Throughout the cold winter months, a date circled on the calendar represented the renewal of fishing. More than that it meant anticipation for specific rituals. Cleaning tackle, tying flies, and putting in for a few days’ vacation built up the expectation. Coordinating with friends and family to repeat the same customs on and off the water was integral and part of the fun.

These days, a significant segment of the fly fishing culture associates opening day with crowds and stocked trout. These two elements are considered antithetical to the core pursuit of fishing. Spots with easy access or holes that are known to congregate fish fill up. Unfortunately, anglers who get unruly, leave behind trash, and push the boundaries of creel limits perpetuate the negative stigma that opening day can hold.

But the two aren’t intrinsically linked. Not every opening day angler represents the worst of the population. The egregious offenses aren’t justifiable, but they are more prominently displayed when concentrated into particular locales on a select few dates. By and large, fishermen and women of all stripes are simply enjoying a beloved pastime.

Modern fly fishers would be remiss to ignore that this ceremonial rite of spring is also their heritage.

A quick survey of classic fly fishing literature from the middle of the 20th century will show that opening day was highly regarded and celebrated by well-known personalities. It wasn’t a matter of being any less refined or educated. On one hand it was the only option. Furthermore, fly fishers of this period appreciated the ritual and the anticipation. It was their opening day, too.

A comprehensive overview of the opening day of trout season would encompass studying ecology, politics, and, most importantly, sociology. Fishing culture, and its various sub-cultures, have changed at a pace much more rapid than fish and game ordinances can be written. For better or worse the values of anglers and the American lifestyle are not what they used to be.

If only for nostalgia, there is something about opening day that should be esteemed. Above the first day of spring or the emergence of a groundhog, the “trout opener” signals the change of seasons. It is a big moment for a fly fisher, regardless of if they have been out all winter or not. For every successive generation, observation of common patterns links and binds people across the years. Opening day has mattered, and still matters, to the culture.

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6 comments

  1. The opening of trout is still very special to me, however the arua and mystique of “the first day” has been watered down with the split regional opener, the youth mentored fishing opener, etc
    And a closing date in Feb/March. It’s like the season never really ended. I appreciate trying to give as many fishing oportunities as possible, especially to youth, but I remember “trout season” used to go “out” in late summer, then fall, then winter, now Feb… It is not quite as special.

    • Matthew says:

      You’re right. In PA the split does make things a little wonky.

      At the same time, I think it’s special that a state like PA has places I can fish for trout year-round!

  2. Gary Emmert says:

    I do remember the excitement of opening day, but would hate to have to go back to that system after discovering the joy of winter fishing on the river. I never really fell in love with ice fishing.
    There’s another opening day I look forward to now! The day the ice clears out of the bay at the boat launch on my favorite still water. For me it holds the same measure of anticipation as opening day used to.
    To make things even better, I often have the entire lake to myself. We are rarely crowded while fishing unless choosing to fish the most famous waters of our state, but having a lake to yourself in this day and age…how can you beat that? (By the way, crowded here is nothing like some pictures of opening day I have seen.)
    I love fishing with friends and family but a day of solitary fishing is a treasure too.
    Any planned day of fishing, with others or by yourself, is cause for great anticipation. It means you have an open day!

    • Matthew says:

      So true, Gary. Now that I live in a more northerly area, ice out is even more exciting than opening day. Especially because you can’t anticipate exactly when it’ll be!

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