One of the rites of late winter and early spring for many 'D Maryland fishermen is the stocking of hatchery trout in lakes, polds, creeks and rivers. This year, nearly 350,000 trout will be stocked between now and the second week of May.
The state Department of Natural Resources, whose Freshwater Fisheries Division stocks the trout, has released a stocking schedule that includes times of closure after stocking to allow the fish to acclimate and disperse before fishing can begin.
The schedule is available through DNR regional service centers, area fisheries offices and tackle shops that sell state fishing licenses.
Among the new sites to be stocked this year are Taneytown Rod and Gun Pond and Bennett Cerf Pond in Carroll County. The stocked area of the Patapsco River has been extended to include the area down to Marriottsville Road.
Westminster Pond has been drained for repairs and will not be stocked this year.
Starting next year, DNR expects to stock 500,000 trout annually. The increase will be made possible by the Mettiki Coal Co. and Genstar Corp., which are providing new trout production facilities.
Anglers fishing for trout need a freshwater fishing license and a trout stamp.
Rockfish meetings
The Department of Natural Resources has scheduled two public meetings on proposed changes in rockfish seasons and creel limits for this year.
The first meeting will be held Monday in the ground floor conference room of the Department of Agriculture building on Harry Truman Parkway in Annapolis.
The second meeting will be held Wednesday at the National Guard Armory on Route 50 in Easton.
Both meetings begin at 7 p.m.
The proposals:
* Spring trophy season -- April 28-May 31, 32-inch minimum, one fish per day, five per season; $2 striped bass permit and tags will be required.
* Early summer season -- June 1-July 4, 26-inch minimum, one fish per day.
* Fall season -- Sept. 1-Nov. 19, 18-inch minimum, two fish per day for all anglers.
* Atlantic Coast season -- As many as 240 days, 28-inch minimum, one fish per day.
Whitbread update
A Maryland entrant in the 1997 Whitbread Round the World Race is a few steps closer to reality, Annapolis sailor and ESPN commentator Gary Jobson said last week at a breakfast meeting in Annapolis.
Jobson said he has three financial backers strongly interested in the project -- a U.S. brewery, a Japanese corporation and an individual.
Jobson would name none of the three, but estimated that the campaign would cost about $5 million.
A leg of the Whitbread race is scheduled to begin in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and end in Baltimore in May 1997. While in Baltimore, the race headquarters would be at the HarborView complex on Key Highway.
The start of the leg leaving Chesapeake Bay would be held near the Bay Bridge and scheduled to coincide with the annual Bay
Bridge walk.
Santa Maria Cup move
The Santa Maria Cup women's match racing championships, which have been sailed on the Inner Harbor the past few years, will move to Eastport Yacht Club in Annapolis this spring.
Race organizers expect to have 10 teams racing J/22s from May 24-28.
Skippers and teams have not been named, said race committee chairman Karen Moran.
Regatta sponsors and interested volunteers may contact the race committee by writing Race Committee Chairman, C/O Santa Maria Cup, 208 Bay City Rd., Stevensville, Md. 21666, or by calling (410) 643-8336 (evenings) or (410) 267-0806 (days).