May Giveaway, Discovery – The Underwater World of Trout DVD

Posted on May 10, 2012 by Robert Ivan

Comment on this article for a chance to win this DVD!

Just in time for trout season. Round Valley Fishing is proud to announce our first giveaway for 2012! Thank you to Wendell Ozefovich’s (Ozzie) for donating some DVD’s to give away. Visit his website if you’d like to go ahead and buy the dvd’s otherwise just leave a comment here and be entered to win it FREE.

The Underwater World of Trout - Volume One, Discovery

Discovery – The Underwater World of Trout
In this unique video you will be taken into The Underwater World of Trout. The view under the stream is not as bucolic and stable as you have come to believe. A stream is alive, not just with trout and insects, but with minnows, crayfish, and a varied mix of living things. What looks like crystal clear water is chock full of sticks, leaves, bubbles and larvae. This exploration of a trout’s world, from under the surface, opens your eyes to a new appreciation of trout and their living world.

For a chance to win this DVD simply leave a comment below. One winner will be randomly selected on June 1st. The winner will be contacted with their email address on file, so make sure you utilize your correct email address when commenting. The winner will have 5 days to claim their prize then another winner will be randomly picked. Good luck and Tight Lines!

The Underwater World of Trout – Trout Vision and Refraction

Posted on April 7, 2012 by Robert Ivan

Just in time for opening day!
Have you ever gone trout fishing and wondered, “How deep is that fish? One foot? Two feet? Was it deeper? How large was it’s ‘circle of vision’, and does it matter? Do trout really have blind spots? How low must you be before they are aware of your presence? Does it matter what you wear and how you move?”

$Trout Vision and Refraction DVD$

The Underwater World of Trout – Trout Vision and Refraction

Trout Vision & Refraction is part three in a four part series of trout education videos and lectures put together and filmed by Wendell “Ozzie” Ozefovich. Visit the Underwater World of Trout for more info and to buy the dvd’s.

The video is about 45minutes long and can get quite technical, but Ozzy breaks it all down and shows real-world examples of the concepts he’s explaining. Just like the first video, The Underwater World of Trout – Discovery, I watched this with my 4 y/o son and we both learned a lot. If you are a passionate fisherman, this video and the others in the series are a must watch.

Open Letter to Dave Chanda, Director, Division of Fish and Wildlife, NJ DEP

Posted on March 21, 2012 by Robert Ivan

March 20, 2012
　
Dave Chanda
Director
Division of Fish and Wildlife
NJ DEP
MC501-03
PO Box 420
Trenton, NJ 08625-0420
　
Mr. Chanda;
I am writing to you concerning the stocking of Lake Trout in Merrill Creek Reservoir and Monksville Reservoir. Myself and many NJ anglers feel the time has come to stop stocking Lake Trout in New Jersey waters.

Presently, I am the moderator for the freshwater section of www.njfishing.com. I talk, and fish, with many anglers who agree that the Lake Trout stocking program should come to an end.

I have fished Merrill Creek Reservoir for better than 10 years now and keep accurate log books. Recently, it seems I can not fish through the Lake Trout to catch other species. Years past, I did well with Rainbow and Brown Trout, now all I get are Lake Trout. One of the problems with Lake Trout in Merrill Creek Reservoir is that anglers really don’t target them there, many people focus on Bass. Some of the heavier tackle used to catch lake trout like downriggers and lead core line is not used at Merrill Creek because of the electric motors only regulation. As far as Monksville is concerned, the focus for most anglers there are walleye and muskellunge, not lake trout.

Many freshwater anglers fish for the fight and not so much for the table, the fight of a lake trout can be compared to reeling in a wet beach towel. So far my family has 2 trout mounted and hung on the wall, my wife has her former state record, an 18 lb. Brown Trout from Round Valley and my 11 lb. Brown Trout from Merrill Creek. I was holding out hope for the return of big Brown Trout but it seems the Lake Trout have all but taken over.

I do not understand why there is a closed season for Lake Trout at Merrill Creek if no natural reproduction is taking place. I understand testing has been done at Merrill Creek to see if natural Lake Trout reproduction is taking place, as anglers we would refute that claim. I have personally caught Lake Trout at Merrill Creek that were full of eggs.

In New Jersey, we only have a few lakes with the qualities to produce trophy trout and the power company is kind enough to let us fish one of them. Merrill Creek is my favorite lake.

A major concern is that lakes like Merrill Creek and Monksville will lose their forage base the same way Round Valley did. I still find it strange that the limits on Round Valley Lake Trout have been raised in an effort to reduce the Lake Trout population there, but less than an hour drive away Merrill Creek gets 3,250 lake trout annually.

Overall, I think Fish and Game has done a great job handling our resources, but I think it is time for a change; end the closed season on Lake Trout, and stop stocking Lake Trout.

I feel so strongly about doing away with the Lake Trout program, I am taking the time to sit down and write this letter to you. I am sure if you stop the Laker program now there would be praise for the decision from many of New Jerseys freshwater fishermen.

I will be taking my vacation in late May again this year in hopes of finding big Brown Trout in Merrill Creek but my hopes are fading as I reel in one Lake Trout after another. Maybe some day the big Brown Trout will make a come back and make fishing headlines once again.
　
　
Sincerely,
　
Andrew Still
Middlesex NJ 08846
Stillville4@yahoo.com

The Underwater World of Trout – Discovery

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Robert Ivan

May 2012 Giveaway – We are now giving away this DVD

While at the NJ Fly Fishing Show in Somerset NJ this year I purchased an unassuming DVD from an unassuming booth near the entryway. The DVD is called Discovery and is volume one in filmmaker/fly fisherman Wendell Ozefovich’s (Ozzie) four part lecture program entitled, The Underwater World of Trout.

The Underwater World of Trout - Volume One, Discovery

Discovery
In this unique video you will be taken into The Underwater World of Trout. The view under the stream is not as bucolic and stable as you have come to believe. A stream is alive, not just with trout and insects, but with minnows, crayfish, and a varied mix of living things. What looks like crystal clear water is chock full of sticks, leaves, bubbles and larvae. This exploration of a trout’s world, from under the surface, opens your eyes to a new appreciation of trout and their living world.

There are no staged aquarium shots; these trout are in their natural environment. There is also footage of sea-run rainbow and brown trout. There are wild fish and stocked fish, fighting fish and spawning fish. You will see beneath the surface as trout feed on drifting invertebrates and surface flies, and how a trout views an angler through its window.

There is a segment on electrofishing and stream bank restoration, which will show that anglers, together with private conservation organizations and government agencies, can work together toward a common goal. This is one of the few presentations that almost everyone from rank beginner to crusty old cuss walks away having learned something!

My four year old son and I watched the 52 minute DVD together and we both enjoyed it immensely. I have watched the video half a dozen times since, watching and learning each time. Ozzie’s narration is clear and well structured for learning. The underwater footage alone confirmed and refuted several assumptions I had made about what was going on under the water.

I have an upcoming interview with Ozzie about him and his work on these videos. If you’d like to ask him a question please post it below, on our Facebook page, Twitter, or email.

About Ozzie
Ozzie has been filming and videotaping for more than four decades, so he has the skill and equipment to produce a quality experience. He is an accomplished fly fisherman who looks at a river not just as an angler, but also as a filmmaker. He asks the same questions you do—sometimes finding answers, sometimes finding more questions to ask. visit his website at www.UnderwaterOz.com

Today – Washington Crossing Audubon Society Birding Trip

Posted on February 12, 2012 by Robert Ivan

Washington Crossing Audubon Society (www.washingtoncrossingaudubon.org) will host a birding field trip led by Mark Witmer from 8:30 AM – 12:00 PM on Sunday, Feb. 12, to the Round Valley Reservoir in Hunterdon County.

This 180-foot deep reservoir is a year-round site for birding, but especially popular in the Winter for gulls, waterfowl, visiting raptors, nesting bald eagles, and over-wintering owls.

Meet at the main boat launch in the Northwest corner of the park (about 1 mile North of the main entrance). Contact Mark Witmer (609-730-0826) for more information, directions, or notice of trip cancellation due to inclement weather.

Depending on birding and weather conditions, the trip may include a visit to nearby Spruce Run Recreational Area or the Alpha Grasslands. The public is invited, and there is no charge for this or any other WCAS-sponsored field trip.

Price: Free