Finding Trout Streams

By: Erik Tuononen

 The brook trout is sometimes not a hard fish to catch once you find them but finding them can be a whole new ballgame.

 First choose an area where you think there might be brook trout remember that for a creek to have brook trout in it you must make sure that the water is cold year round’ this means that even in the heat of the summer the water will be cold.

Also factor in that this place will probably be in a forest as trees shade the stream and will enable the stream to maintain its temperature. Lastly try to choose a stream that is a fairly far from a city. If this stream is close to a smaller town and this town is far from a major city then your chances are good.

Farmland is where many trout streams are located and farmland trout streams have an advantage sometimes there are not too many bugs i.e. mosquitoes which makes fishing easier.

In southern Ontario many farmland trout streams have brown trout as well as rainbow trout as Southern Ontario is where most of the settling was done during the 1800s. For example if you go near towns that have German influence or most of the settlers in that area were German you will most likely find brown trout in those streams due to the fact that brown trout come from Germany and many settlers were eager to stock their streams upon settling in Ontario.
 
For areas further north you will probably find brook trout sometimes browns and again sometimes rainbows but the further north streams will more than likely only contain brook trout as they will most likely have had little impact upon them by urban sprawl.

The advantage for the further north streams are more fish but you will probably have to battle monster mosquitoes. Once you have the name of your town then try to find the name of the watershed that the town is in. With this you can find MNR or other agencies’ fish sampling records/water temperature records. Many government agencies use these to check on the impact of urbanization on streams. Find which stream in that watershed in the healthiest and the coldest.
 
Ponds are also your enemy. If you have found a trout stream that looks perfect but has warmer water look on maps to see if there is a pond, if so try fishing upstream of the pond because ponds warm water which is bad if you are fishing for trout.

Also make sure that there are some fairly deep bends or cover in this stream or fishing will be hard as no cover=no fish.
 
Once you have found a trout stream that you think is suitable check maps from the town as to where public property is or where city owned property is. Many times if you are fishing a culvert under a road there is about 5 or more feet on either side of the road that is city property in case repairs on the road need to be done, but if someone tells you to leave, then leave.

Many a fisherman have found themselves on private property in a “honey hole” but then had someone escort them off the property with a shotgun jammed in their backs or have been arrested and prosecuted.
 
In you battle against mosquitoes sometimes bug spray works but be very careful not to get any bug spray on your hands or when you are handling the fish the chemicals may kill the fish later. I have bought a mosquito net that goes over my head and keeps the mosquitoes off without chemicals. Also remember to obey all regulations and rules.

The government has been trying to rehabilitate and protect many trout streams from urban sprawl and other problems and so littering, poaching etc. WILL be dealt with very severely most often more severely than in other lakes or rivers. Try to use barbless hooks and to practice catch and release.
 
Lastly keep your spot a secret because If more people come to your spot then that means that there might be more trash or just other fishermen. This is possibly one of the most important guidelines and is one that is followed by trout fishermen nationwide and this is why good trout streams can not be found by a internet search most of the time.
This will also protected trout streams for many generations to come. This may seem like a selfish action to some but it is really for them wellbeing of these streams. If you only tell one person then that person tells only one person then already 3 people know about the spot. Plus a little homework can go a long way and if you want to find good trout streams homework is your key to success.