South Carolina’s Dept. of Natural Resources (SCDNR) stocks about 60,000 trout each year in the Saluda River in what it calls a “put, grow and take” fishery. It relies on fish stocking to maintain populations and the cooperation of anglers for it’s success.

Young trout grow rapidly after stocking if they’re allowed to remain in the river. For young trout to reach their potential however, they shouldn’t be removed from the river immediately after stocking. If given time to grow, they can reach up to 16″ – considered trophy size for this type of fishery. For trout to reach this size, anglers must practice catch-and-release fishing, especially during the winter and early spring. DNR conservation officers will be patrolling the river heavily to hold down over-the-limit catches.

South Carolina’s trout fishery generates about $9 million annually for the state’s economy in direct retail sales, with a total estimated economic output of more than $18 million. More than 400,000 trout are stocked into public waters in the upcountry each year by SCDNR – in more than 50 cold-water rivers and streams in Greenville, Pickens and Oconee counties, in Lake Jocassee, and in the cool tailwaters below the Lake Hartwell and Lake Murray dams. [SCDNR]

Here’s a video of SCDNR stocking the Saluda River with trout last year:

* Update Nov. 20th, 2008: SCDNR wound up stocking about 17,000 brown and rainbow trout in the Lower Saluda River this year.