Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) regulations in Maryland

Trout · Freshwater · 2026 season

Is it a keeper? Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) has no size limit today, with a daily limit of 5.

Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) size limit, season and daily limit

Where	Season	Size limit	Daily limit
Put-and-Take Trout Fishing Areas (Closure 0 waters)	Open year-round	No size limit	5 daily / 10 possession, all trout except brook (brook = 0)
Put-and-Take Trout Fishing Areas (Closure 1 waters)	March 28 – March 8	No size limit	5 daily / 10 possession, all trout except brook (brook = 0); closed to all fishing Mar 8-28, 2026
Delayed Harvest Group I (Catoctin/Little Catoctin Creek, Middle Patuxent, Town Creek, South Branch Patapsco)	June 1 – September 30	No size limit	June 1-Sept 30: 5 daily / 10 possession; Oct 1-May 31: no possession, artificials only, barbless
Delayed Harvest Group II (Casselman River, North Branch Potomac in Potomac State Forest)	June 16 – September 30	No size limit	June 16-Sept 30: 5 daily / 10 possession; Oct 1-June 15: no possession, artificials only, barbless
Owens Creek, Buck Lantz Rd to Roddy Rd	March 1 – May 31	No size limit	Mar 1-May 31 Put-and-Take rules (5/10); June 1-last day of Feb no possession
Catch-and-Return Trout Fishing Areas (Big Hunting Creek, Beaver Creek fly section, Patuxent River sections, Morgan Run, Paint Branch, Gunpowder Falls Prettyboy-Bluemount, North Branch Potomac sections, Little Hunting Creek)	Closed to harvest	—	—
Savage River Trophy Trout areas	Open year-round	12 inch minimum	2 daily / 4 possession all trout combined; brook 12 in, brown 18 in, others no minimum

Notes

Statewide default outside these areas is 2 trout per day / 4 in possession, no size limit.
Put-and-Take (stocked) areas allow 5 per day / 10 possession, no size limit, but brook trout are always release-only there.
Closure 1 Put-and-Take waters are closed to ALL fishing from 10 p.m. March 8 to 6:30 a.m. March 28, 2026 (opening day). Closure 0 waters never close.
Catch-and-Return areas: no trout may be kept; fly-only sections require conventional fly tackle; artificial-lure sections ban bait and scent; barbless hooks required.
Trout streams are closed to fishing 10 p.m.-5:30 a.m. (except impoundments of 5+ acres). Culling trout is illegal.
Proposed for 2027: Governors Bridge Pond and Waterworks Park Pond added as year-round put-and-take (5/day); lower Savage trophy sections to become catch-and-return (https://dnr.maryland.gov/fisheries/pages/regulations/changes.aspx).

Exact Maryland DNR Fishing & Boating Services wording

Season: Put-and-Take: open year round except Closure 1 areas closed to all fishing 10 p.m. Mar 8 to 6:30 a.m. Mar 28, 2026; Delayed Harvest Group I harvest June 1–Sept 30, Group II June 16–Sept 30; Catch-and-Return areas closed to possession year round
Size: No minimum size
Limit: 5 daily / 10 possession (all trout except brook) in Put-and-Take and in-season Delayed Harvest; 0 in Catch-and-Return areas
Put-and-Take Trout Fishing Areas (Closure 0 waters) — as printed: “Creel limit (brook) – 0 Daily/0 Possession – all brook trout must be immediately released. Creel Limit (all other species of trout) combined 5 Daily/10 Possession. Minimum Size—no minimum size. Season—areas are closed to all fishing from 10 p.m. of the first date, to 6:30 a.m. of the second date ... Closure 0 — No Closure. Closure 1 — March 8–March 28, 2026”

Source: Maryland DNR Fishing & Boating Services, captured 2026-10-04 (2026 season).

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About the trout

Small prey fish

Forage fish, also called prey fish or bait fish, are small pelagic fish that feed on planktons and other small aquatic organisms. They are in turn preyed upon by various predators including larger fish, seabirds and marine mammals, this making them keystone species in their aquatic ecosystems.

Text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Regulations on this page come from Maryland DNR Fishing & Boating Services, not Wikipedia.

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Frequently asked

What is the size limit for Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) in Maryland?

No size limit in Maryland state waters.

How many Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) can you keep per day in Maryland?

5 daily / 10 possession, all trout except brook (brook = 0).

When is Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) season in Maryland?

Open year-round.

Is my Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) a keeper today?

Trout (Put-and-Take, Delayed Harvest and Catch-and-Return areas) has no size limit today, with a daily limit of 5.