Photo by Jason Mitchell

The term "four-season destination" was made for New England, and the region's fisheries are no exception. Early season stream trouting, dog days trolling, fall fly-casting and hardwater action are all available to the New England angler.

With only 12 months in a year, there's no way an angler could hit all the great places this region has to offer, so here's a roundup of some best-bet waters to try in 2010:

JANUARY
Rainbow Trout: Crystal Lake, Conn.
This 200-acre Trophy Trout lake in Ellington is stocked with rainbow and brown trout. It is also a good fishery for largemouth and smallmouth bass, chain pickerel and panfish.

The lake is at the intersection of routes 30 and 140. Access to the western shore may be had off Route 30.

Check DeLorme's Connecticut/Rhode Island Atlas and Gazetteer, map 54 for area details.

Muskellunge: Saint John River, Maine
This Aroostook County river is an excellent fishery for muskellunge, and also provides hardwater anglers with opportunities for smallmouth bass and brook trout. The Saint John is open for fishing from Jan. 1 to March 31 from the International Bridge in Van Buren downstream to the Maine-New Brunswick border in Hamlin.

Check DeLorme's Maine Atlas and Gazetteer, maps 65, 66 and 67 for access sites and area details.

Brown Trout: Olney Pond, R.I.
Olney Pond in Lincoln Woods State Park is stocked with trout in spring and fall, and occasionally receives an infusion of surplus broodstock Atlantic salmon.

Access to the 120-acre lake is via Route 95 north to Route 146.

Check DeLorme's Connecticut/Rhode Island Atlas and Gazetteer, Map 65 for area details.

FEBRUARY
Brown Trout: Lake Quinsigamond, Mass.
This 772-acre lake in Worcester and Shrewsbury is divided into three distinct sections: a deep, narrow basin to the north, a shallower southern basin with multiple coves and islands and the shallow, southernmost section known as Flint Pond. Fishing at night at the northern end of the lake is productive for brown trout and for rainbow smelt. Yellow perch are plentiful in the southern portion of the lake, and Flint Pond is most productive for northern pike.

Access is available off North Quinsigamond Avenue and Route 20. Check DeLorme's Massachusetts Atlas and Gazetteer, Map 38, for area details.

Yellow Perch: Lake Champlain, Vt.
Vermont's 120-mile-long Lake Champlain is one of the Green Mountain State's premier destinations for winter yellow perch.

Stick to the safe ice along the shoreline. Check DeLorme's Vermont Atlas and Gazetteer, Map 44, for access information all along the big lake's shoreline.

Northern Pike: Waterman Reservoir, R.I.
This 306-acre hardwater haven in Glocester is stocked with pike. The reservoir is also a productive destination for largemouth bass and chain pickerel. Access is off Route 44. Check DeLorme's CT/RI AG, Map 65 for area details.

MARCH
Walleyes: Mashapaug Lake, Conn.
This 287-acre lake in Union is managed for walleyes and is a Bass Management Lake.

Drop large, lively shiners to varying depths to find schools of feeding walleyes. Access is through Bigelow Hollow State Park via Route 171, about 1.3 miles east of Route 190.

Check DeLorme's CT/RIAG, Map 56, for area details.