Has the Roanoke River Greenway hurt trout fishing?
Trout stocking season opened yesterday.
As I mentioned in a note in my column today in The Roanoke Times, some fishermen have expressed concern about how expansion of the Roanoke River Greenway in Salem might impact stocking in that popular put-and-take section.
One of those guys is a regular correspondent who has been complaining about the greenway for years.
I am an unapologetic greenway fan. I believe the greenway gets people out and about and is a great, easily accessible gateway to outdoors physical activity.
I also believe it has enhanced access to the river. After all, it’s a path that follows the riverbank.
The greenway critic disagrees, at least when the topic is trout fishing.
He says that it has hurt fishermen because, among other reasons, they now must park in designated spots and walk farther to fishing holes. The new section in Salem, for example, is an area where fishermen were able to simply pull off the road and walk directly to the river. They can’t do that now.
He also questions whether stocking crews are doing as well as they once could in spreading fish out. I would argue they should be doing better — but to do so will involve coordination with gatekeepers so the truck can actually get on the greenway.
I don’t disagree that, for someone who is truly mobility-impaired, there are limited spots to fish the stocked section of the river. But are there fewer spots than there were prior to the greenway? Let’s face it, rivers are not, generally speaking, easy to access for people with impaired mobility. But is the concern really about people who are physically unable to walk to the riverbank to fish? Or about people who simply don’t want to walk much at all to fish?
I admit I’m not the best judge here. I like to fish the river in the summer for sunfish and bass, and the greenway has made it easier for me to get to more river without having to break out my canoe. It hasn’t hurt my trout fishing, but I’m not a regular. And when I do fish I don’t mind walking.
So, I pose the question to you readers who regularly fish the Roanoke for trout. Is fishing worse now than it was prior to the greenway? Better? Why?
What suggestions might you have for improving the Roanoke River fishery, not only for trout, but for other species?
October 2, 2012 - 1:39 PM
My husband, son and I were finally able to get out and go fishing in Salem yesterday. The water was low and I was the only one who went home with trout (only 2 though and they were nothing to brag about) I’ve been fishing the Roanoke River in Salem since I was a little girl, and always love it when Stocking Season comes around.
First let me say, that I do think the Greenways are nice and add a little charm to the community and I personally am looking forward to walking on them. But I noticed yesterday, that some of the fishing holes that were once secluded “from the world” and seemed like an escape from everything are no longer secluded. It was always nice being able to get to that spot where it was just you and the water and no one else. Now you have people walking by and looking down at you.
There still seem to be a few pulloff’s along Riverside Drive, or aleast thats what we took it as and parked there for several hours. I hope thats what they were meant for, because no I do not want to have to walk a half a mile to fish. And being a woman with fishing gear, makes people toot the horn. Very aggravating….
I do think that the Greenway will make other spots more accessible though to spots I have never been, such as down behind the Riverwalk Apts, and on down near the Steel Mill, so I am looking forward to the extension of that Greenway.
As far as the fish in the river….As much as we have to pay for a fishing license, something needs to be done. I do not agree with delayed harvest. And we especially do not need two of them.