Mid-Atlantic
Fly fishing in New Jersey
Short answer
New Jersey fly fishing is small-river and freestone fishing in the north-west of the state, with wild brown trout in a handful of streams and heavy stocking everywhere else. The South Branch Raritan, the Big Flat Brook and the Musconetcong are the headline waters. A licence and a trout stamp are both required from age 16.
What makes New Jersey different
New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the country and it still has wild brown trout, which is the whole story in one sentence. The north-west corner — Warren, Sussex and Hunterdon counties — holds limestone-influenced streams and steep freestone water that look nothing like the rest of the state, and a short list of them hold self-sustaining populations that the state manages as wild trout streams with no stocking at all. Around that sits one of the heaviest stocking programmes in America, close to six hundred thousand trout a year into waters that in many cases run through suburbs. The practical consequence is that New Jersey fishing divides sharply by date: opening day and the weeks after it are a crowd, and the wild streams in October are empty.
What trout and other fish are in New Jersey?
- Brown trout
- Wild and self-sustaining in a short list of north-western streams, stocked in many more.
- Rainbow trout
- Stocked in enormous numbers, with some holdover fish in the bigger rivers.
- Brook trout
- Native, in the coldest headwaters of the north-west. The state's only native trout.
- Smallmouth bass
- The Delaware and the lower Raritan. Very good, and a sensible answer in July.
- Striped bass
- The Delaware and the coast in spring. A different rod and a different trip.
Where to fly fish in New Jersey
- South Branch Raritan
- Ken Lockwood Gorge is the best-known trout water in the state — a railbed walk and a narrow, rocky river.
- Big Flat Brook
- Sussex County, with a long fly-fishing-only stretch in Stokes State Forest.
- Musconetcong River
- Limestone-influenced, with wild browns in sections and good hatches.
- Pequest River
- Below the state hatchery. Heavily stocked and a good place to start.
- Paulins Kill
- Improving fast since dam removals opened the river up.
- Delaware River
- The border water. Smallmouth, shad in spring, and trout up at the New York end.
When to fly fish in New Jersey
| When | What is happening |
|---|---|
| January – March | Winter trout conservation areas and the year-round streams. Quiet, cold, and the wild fish still eat. |
| April | Opening day and heavy stocking. Crowded, cheerful, and not the time for the wild water. |
| May – June | The best hatches of the year. Caddis, sulphurs and march browns on the north-west rivers. |
| July – August | Too warm for most trout water. Fish the coldest streams at dawn, or go for smallmouth. |
| September – December | Autumn stocking, cooling water, and the wild streams at their best with nobody on them. |
Do you need a license to fly fish in New Jersey?
Yes. Licenses are issued by New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife.
| License | Price |
|---|---|
| Resident, annual | $33 |
| Non-resident, annual | $54 |
The totals are the annual fishing licence plus the trout stamp — $22.50 and $10.50 for residents aged 16 to 64, $34 and $20 for non-residents. The trout stamp is required to fish for trout at all, not only to keep one. Both expire on 31 December. Prices change — check with the agency before you buy.
Rules worth knowing before you go
- A fishing licence is required from age 16, and a trout stamp is required in addition to fish for or possess trout — whether or not you keep them.
- Residents aged 70 and over need neither a licence nor a trout stamp.
- Licences and stamps run from the date of purchase to 31 December, not a year from purchase.
- Wild Trout Streams are managed without stocking and carry their own tackle and harvest rules.
- Fly-fishing-only stretches, Trout Conservation Areas and Year Round Trout Conservation Areas are each designated separately. Check the stretch before you fish it.
Regulations change every year and vary water by water. The New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife rule book is the only authority — this page is a starting point, not a legal reference.
Flies that matter in New Jersey
Each of these is a card in the deck, and each has a full page in Our Fly-brary.
Keep reading
- Do I need a fishing license? — how licensing works across states
- How to read water — where trout hold, anywhere
- Best time of day to fly fish — the seasonal logic behind the table above
- Our Fly-brary — every fly in the deck, explained
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The deck
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