Need to get these lakes stocked! HOW?

[Fishie]

I moved not too long ago and there are two lakes behind my house. One was their before and I think their is only bluegill in it because I fished it for bass and nothing happened. THe other is brand new and nothings in it. How would I go about getting these lakes stocked for free? I just wish there were bass in them so I could fish them everyday for bass. Who should I contact and How should I go about doing it. I can't stock them myself cause I don't have that much money. Maybe people in the subdivision would want to stock it too.

Any advice or info would be greatly appreciated.

[DDbasser]

Hey Fishie,

If your subdivision has a Home owners Association, you could attend one of the meetings and suggest stocking the ponds, first you need to get some idea of the cost(if you have a fish farm do it) or the other option is to contact your local DNR and see if they will stock it for you.

Here in Ok we have a program where the Wildlife Dept. will stock your pond for free, BUT you have to let everyone have access to it and you have to have a state Licsense to fish it.

If it's a private pond and you stock it then you don't need a licsense.

Most of this info should be on your states DNR website.

Good luck ;D

[Sam]

Good question that I and many of my friends have asked and this is what we have found out in Richmond, Virginia.

First, who owns the lake or pond?

If it is a municipal entity you have to do your research and find out who within the municipal entity is in charge of the body of water and contact that individual to find out what do you have to do to have it stocked.  Remember, a city's budget is tight; you will have more latitude with a county or parrish government rather than a city government.

And stocking a pond or lake is not high on a municipality's list of things to do.

Second, was the body of water constructed as a water runoff retaining pond that has evolved over the years into a nice fishing hole because others have put fish in it.  If this is the case, you will not get any help from any municipal entity.

Third, if the body of water is controlled by the state you will have a more positive response.  In Virginia, lakes and ponds owned by the state are tested and stocked by the state on an "as needed" basis.  The state's Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (or whatever it is called) will be very helpful and they can tell you all you want to know about of water and its stocking, etc.

Fourth, if the body of water is owned by the residents along the bank; a private individual;  a partnership; a LLC; a company; or a homeowners association, you will have to contact them, direct.  You can do this by checking the tax records within the jurisdiction the body of water is situated to find out who owns the property.

Or, you can start stocking the body of water yourself with bream, minnows, crawfish and then small bass.  I do not suggest stocking it with catfish.  

Of course, you will have to make sure there is cover placed around the body of water for the alge to grow and feed the plankton and minnows, etc.

But please make sure you can put a raft or canoe in the body of water or you will meet some nice law enforcement officers who will take you away.

Finding out who owns the body of water is your most important task; followed by speaking with the owner's representative.

Good luck.  Lete us know what you find out.

[Blaze]

Those are excellent ideas. Make sure if it gets stocked that there is a limit as to how many carp they put in them also. The one across from our Fire station is about 1.5 acre and has about 20 carp in it. It has no vegitation and the bass struggle to grow in numbers.