PROVIDENCE – The Department of Environmental Management has stocked additional areas in Rhode Island for the winter fishing season. Beginning in January 2014, Olney Pond, Lincoln Woods State Park, Lincoln, Upper Mellville Pond, Portsmouth, and the Roundtop Ponds in Burrillville will be stocked with over 1000 brook trout.
Winter stocked fish will contribute to an enjoyable winter fishing and ice fishing experience. They will also hold over for Opening Day, April 12th, 2014.
A current fishing license and a Trout Conservation Stamp are required to keep or possess a trout. The daily creel and possession limit for trout, Dec 1, 2013-February 28, 2014 currently stands at two per day.
Anglers are reminded of a new regulation that began in 2012 that prohibits the use of felt soled footgear in any fresh waters of Rhode Island. This includes any waters shared with adjacent states in which Rhode Island Fishing Regulations apply.
The Department advises anglers to check with individual communities about safe ice conditions on local ponds before ice fishing, as DEM does not monitor ice conditions in local communities. Ice must have a uniform thickness of at least six inches before it is considered safe by DEM. It generally takes at least five to seven consecutive days of temperatures in the low 20s and is determined by a number of factors such as the size and depth of a pond, presence of springs or currents, and local temperature fluctuations. For ice conditions at Olney Pond at Lincoln Woods State Park, call DEM's 24-hour ice safety hotline at 222-2632. DEM has an ice safety guide that can be found online at its parks website, www.riparks.com.