Director’s Message

Just step outside in New Hampshire to find opportunities to fish. With 12,000 miles of rivers and streams and 975 lakes and ponds in the Granite State, you’re never far from great fishing—and the relaxation and great scenery that go with it.

The experiences are as diverse as the state itself. You can target native brookies in our mountain streams, bring in a big bass or laker in the Lakes Region, or head for the mighty Connecticut River, with a dozen or more different species of fish to catch.

We keep things exciting by stocking more than a million rainbow, brook and brown trout every year for your fishing pleasure. They’re not hard to find—check out our stocking reports on our website at fishnh.com. Trout get a lot of the limelight, but New Hampshire’s strong warmwater fisheries offer action-packed adventure as well, from bass, pike and pickerel to perch, pumpkinseeds and crappie.

Take it from me, kids love to go fishing, and there’s no better way for families to spend time together outdoors. Children under age 16 fish free, so it can be an affordable pastime. We talk more and more these days about the importance of reconnecting kids with the natural world. Get them to put down the remote and pick up a fishing rod! We all benefit when that happens, because teaching youngsters to fish and appreciate nature is a big investment in nurturing future conservationists.

A lot of you enjoy getting out on the water, and thanks to our Public Boat Access Program, guided by the Public Water Access Advisory Board, or PWAAB, there are now more than 140 Fish and Game boat launch sites around the state. Each of these sites is as unique as the body of water it sits on and offers experiences that are just as varied. Construction and maintenance of these facilities is supported in part by the federal Sport Fish Restoration Program.

I still get out on the water as often as I can—or on the ice, depending on the season. If you’ve never tried ice fishing, maybe this is your year. Check the Ice Fishing section for the basic rules and gear. Wrap up the day with a big fish fry—there’s nothing I like more.

So fish New Hampshire and relax this year. I hope to see you outside!

Glenn Normandeau

Executive Director

NH Fish and Game Department