FISHERMAN'S CALENDAR

SO season opens
SC season closes
C clear water
D water dirty, roily
N water normal height
SH slightly high
H high
VH very high
M water muddy
L low
R rising
WT50 water 50°
FG fishing good
FVG fishing very good
FF fishing fair
FP fishing poor
OG outlook good
OVG outlook very good
OF outlook fair
OP outlook poor

TROUT: NEW HAMPSHIRE: Woods are open again after soaking rain and OG in ponds with excellent hatches reported. Richard Alden Knight of Garden City, N.Y., took a 2-pound brookie from Pleasant Lake on a Mickey Finn; but Reverend John P. Mathis, assistant pastor of the First Congregational Church in Concord, really stopped the presses. While casting the Blackwater River a small trout took his No. 16 Royal Coachman, a big trout took the small trout, and one hour and 20 minutes later Reverend Mathis landed a 21½-inch, 4-pound-plus brown.

MARYLAND: State Game and Inland Fish Commission decided that holdover of stocked trout is so poor season should be lengthened to 11 months. New ruling makes fishing legal until March 14 in all waters except the Savage River watershed in Garrett County, where season remains April 15 to Sept. 15. Only month closed in remainder of state was reserved by commission so trout could be stocked without a caravan of anglers trailing hatchery trucks.

IDAHO: Water N and C with FVG throughout state. Magic Reservoir yielding rainbows to 3 pounds on Black and Tan streamers or trolled Flatfish. A few 8-and 9-pounders reported taken on No. 2 and No. 4 trolled streamers. Strike Reservoir and Island Park Reservoir also productive with anglers leaning to orange and black Flat fish trolled slow and deep. Middle Fork of Boise L and C and offering limits to 14 inches on Black Gnat and Renegade dries; FVG/OVG.

MONTANA: Best dry-fly fishing of season in progress with out-of-state anglers gone and instate anglers hunting. Streams are N and C and Adams, Quill Gordon, Gray Wulff and Grizzly Wulff dries are all taking limits. Large brown trout are making their spawning run up the Madison and Yellowstone and are susceptible to streamers or wobbling spoons; OVG while good weather holds.

OREGON: FP/OP with heavy snows in high areas and generally cold weather discouraging the most dedicated trouters.

WISCONSIN: Brule River N and C, WT 44 and browns to 5 pounds are hitting spinners.

STRIPED BASS: MASSACHUSETTS: FVG in Cape Cod Canal for small fish to 6 pounds on small eelskins and big fish to 40 pounds on big eelskins, Nauset Beach, South Shore and Plum Island quiet at moment but OG Pamet Bar at mouth of Pamet River on north shore of Cape a likely spot on ebbing tide. Try jig with pork rind. Cuttyhunk FG with boats averaging two fish a day and surfcasters connecting with green Atom or Gibbs White Darter.

SOUTH CAROLINA: FVG/OVG from now through November in Santee-Cooper Reservoir. Schooling in lower basin now concentrated and 5-pound stripers are taking bucktails. Larger fish will hit trolled wobblers or bottom-fished cut shad. Expanding population of reservoir bass dramatically demonstrated by creel census which shows that per-angler catch is up from 1.7 in 1955 to 3.0 in 1957. Since census is believed to reflect only 10% of total fish taken, state estimates, in 12-month period to Aug. 31, over 300,000 stripers were hauled out of Santee-Cooper.

CALIFORNIA: Trolled bugeye jigs garnering limits of 12- to 15-pound fish from Raccoon straits up into delta; FVG/OVG.

STEELHEAD: BRITISH COLUMBIA: FP/OP in Kispiox with water H and M. Anglers praying for freeze, but it seems to be an off year. Spy advises, however, that a run of big fish is now in Thompson River and conditions are excellent.

BLUE MARLIN: PUERTO RICO: Twenty-one teams competing in the Fourth Annual International Game Fish Tournament out of San Juan finished last week after 52 strikes in four days had produced six blue marlin. The largest was a 211-pounder by Jack Mahony of the Miami Beach Rod and Reel Club and it won not only the team trophy but four other individual trophies for Mahony himself.

FLOUNDER: NEW JERSEY: To pass the time while her husband was ashore, Mrs. Jean Bernstein, 44, of Trenton cast a 12-pound test line off the stern of their cruiser and after a 20-minute foray boated a 12-pound 2-ounce summer flounder which the IGFA confirmed as a new world's record for the species. The 31-inch flatfish surpassed the old standard by almost 4 pounds.

BLACK BASS: LOUISIANA: Cool, sunny days and water C providing central state with fine action. OG until late winter rains silt waters.

PENNSYLVANIA: A clean streams program has resulted in bass returning to Williamsport area along Susquehanna. FVG even though catches are somewhat small in size. Streams filling up although water levels in both Allegheny and Susquehanna remain L. OVG.

PACIFIC SALMON: OREGON: FVG in coastal rivers with cohos and chinooks being taken in both salt and fresh waters. Siletz, Alsea rivers now top producers for salt-water trollers. Biggest nuisance is superabundance of salt-water bullheads which greedily devour herring faster than one can replenish bait; frustrated anglers are boating as many as 50 a day. Spin-casters doing nicely in Siuslaw and Nestucca rivers for cohos with favorite lure being red-and-white wobbling spoon, with orange Flatfish a close second. Persistent coastal rains have raised rivers enough to allow fish to move upstream, but most waters well below flood condition. OG until heavy rains arrive.

BRITISH COLUMBIA: While L rivers have delayed upstream movement of silvers, fish are proving fussy, averse to entangling alliances with anglers but Vancouver Island's Campbell River, Qualicum Beach and Cowichan and Oyster bays are all good possibilities and agent advises that red bucktail may prove tempting.