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3. Calling All PA Boys

How's the fishing for you? With the cold high water from snowmelt and the windy conditions in the past few weeks, I've had more 1 fish days and skunkings that I'd like to admit. Anybody out there having some luck? Or having better skill pay off?

In two words - it sucks! I went to the Quitty yesterday for the first time in at least five years. I'd promised myself I'd never go back there because it is such a hellhole filled with silt and slippery clay banks but when Clarks is still frozen and the Wisconisco is half frozen and the open water is high and brown I had little choices left. I arrived at noon and it was a nice day. The creek is really moving and there was zero visibility. I was so happy I'd brought my wading staff to not only gage the depth of the water but to assist my ingress into the water.

I Czech nymphed for three hours, albeit not a steady three hours, I'd walk to a good looking run, find a bench to sit on and cast from shore. I was afraid to get into the water. I had visions of getting stuck in the quagmire, falling face forward and drowning!

I hooked two fish and promptly allowed them to become unbuttoned. It was though a very warm and sunny day and I thoroughly enjoyed sitting on the many park benches, chatting with whomever came along the path and listening to the many song birds.

Today was even warmer than yesterday but it got very windy around 10:30. I had a bunch of errands to run to get ready for our Jamaica trip but around 11:00 I drove down to Muddy Creek in Bridgeville and caught two 8" wild appearing brown trout. There are huge, 12" thick, slabs of ice as big as pianos lining both sides of the creek in numerous places. The water, while frigid, was not high and had about 15" of clarity but the rest of the water column had that "glacial" colored water. After two hours of staring at my 24" red Amnesia sighter, and getting colder and beat up by the wind I decided to call it quits around 3:30. Hopefully when we return on the 29th the water will have warmed up a bit and the fishing will improve.

I'd love to take a ride up to Spring Creek the week I get back and if anyone is interested, who lives in the York/Lancaster/Harrisburg area, maybe we can go together to share the drive and gas money.

I've been catching fish. On dry flies. When it's not blowing 45 mph.

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Up here in central Erie County, in PA's frozen NW, we (when you average the snow piles in with the widely-spaced bare spots) still have approximately a foot of snow and I haven't been fishing yet this year. I've been spending a lot of my time in the basement making pike flies. Some of them are pretty wild looking. Yesterday, I took a recently finished 4/0 purple bunny bugger (with mono weed guard installed..) and shook it at the cat. It traumatized him so severely that he threw up on the basement floor. But, come to think about it, he does that at least once a week anyway, so it might not have anything to do with the fly. Who knows?

About the only thing I do know for sure is that we'll all be fishing soon, and that'll be a good thing..

Good work, Eric. It doesn't surprise me that you're finding them. And I suspect in the upper reaches of a stream somewhere west of Harrisburg where the cress grows thick. Nice photo.

Matt, I live near the Quitty, and rarely fish it, for the reasons you cite. Before the snow started melting I was up at Spring Creek, and ran into Shawn, a Troutnut who's been offline for a bit. We had a pretty good day, nymphing up a number of fish, including one around 20" and several on dries. And my one fish days each resulted in 14-15" wild browns. But like you I've been feeling out the waters more recently, and it's been tough for me and other guys I've been talking with. The PA boys have gotten together on Spring Creek a time or two for olives; perhaps we can gather again this month or next, if the cold and wind let up. I had thought I might get out locally a bit today after work, but looking at the temperature and wind speed have decided to tie some flies instead.

Lee, I'm looking forward to seeing some photos of those pike. Fished for them the first time last summer, and it was fun. But please stop scaring that poor cat. ;>

Hey Louis. I fished Yellow Creek on Monday and hooked one fish. It was real slow, colored and high. Saw very few olives and no risers. Oh, yea, forgot to mention that my buddy fishing near me all day caught about 15 on nymphs. I was using the same flies and had just one hook-up. Everyone we spoke with was doing nothing. I guess my buddy had some kind of mojo working for him. I blamed it on leaving my waders at home, losing my tippet ring, and lack of talent. Oh, well, it happens and I'm man enough to admit it. I considered it my exhibition game to begin the new year. HA!

Thanks, but actually to the east of Harrisburg, and no cress...Well maybe a little...

Hmmm . . . ;>

:)

Eric has decided that his pup may get skunked, but he sure as hell isn't! Nice bug pic little brother from PA...I stole it. :)

Spence

Improving stream conditions + blue winged olives = rising fish. It's on.

Let's just hope the front moving in doesn't reverse today's trend.

Well, I know this is a PA thread, but things are looking good here in MI. Barring a nasty long cold spell, we are gradually warming up and if the trend continues I myself may commence trout fishing in April. Snowpack was low (~12"), spring rains haven't hit yet, it's still cold but we're on the warming trend by now for sure. Three years ago my first trout of the year (fly-caught that is, back then I hit rainbows though the ice on a local lake in February) was a colorful 14-inch brown on a POG bugger from the Rifle on the 13th of April. If we're low and clear this year, could be a repeat...goodness knows we could use a nice early season after another brutally cold winter...

Jonathon

"Yesterday, I took a recently finished 4/0 purple bunny bugger (with mono weed guard installed..) and shook it at the cat. It traumatized him so severely that he threw up on the basement floor. But, come to think about it, he does that at least once a week anyway, so it might not have anything to do with the fly. Who knows?"

Yeah, cats do that...but Lee, tie one up without a point on the hook and throw it at him some time and see what he thinks. I could do that with Leo (my 20 lb. Russian Blue) and he'd go nuts, he's a pretty playful guy. In fact, I remember reading an article in one of the fly fishing magazines a few years ago about a guy practicing casting for bonefish in his backyard in winter, anticipating a trip to the Bahamas in March. He had pointless flies and one of his cats got out and started attacking his flies in the snow, which both he and the cat found particularly entertaining...

;oD

Jonathon

Jonathon, you are more than welcome here. Spence has already chimed in. The thread was mostly designed to invite grousing about the lousy weather and commiseration over the bad fishing. And we have snow coming down as I speak. But I found a pod of risers the other day, and believe that next week is looking good for us down here. Olives and stones.

no grousing here. they are out of season, and really if you are physically able to get up, get out and walk around, able to fish, there should be no complaining. recent knee injuries have had me thinking about that a lot.

Another non-PAer here. Our weather has been surprisingly spectacular for this time of year. I made it out last weekend to a favorite river. In two days I caught two fish, both on a #6 olive/white craft fur clouser. Wbranch turned me on to that fly and it has done wonders for me early season. I crawl/jig it along the bottom and occasionally speed up the retrieve if I've had no action for a while. It seems to catch fish when other flies will not.

I saw quite a few stones and some midges out both days, but not a single rise. I anticipate that I could have caught a few more fish had I nymphed with a stonefly pattern, but didn't, so that is purely speculation. It was great to be out in the sunshine and feel that bend in my rod again. One fish was almost 18" and fought me hard for the cold-ish water she was in. I almost gave up for the day right before due to 30 mph winds, but held on. A few minutes later I caught her, then left.

This weekend I'll spend Sunday on a spring creek I've grown quite fond of. There are two sections I really like there, a smaller, rockier upstream section with great spring activity, and a larger, slower, siltier lower end that holds some big fish. Not sure which section I'll be on, but not sure I care. At this point, casting to moving water is enough to keep a smile on my face.

Sorry Louis...I guess us Michigan Boys write first, read after. ;)

Spence

Amen to that. After my bout with tendonitis that past spring, I'm actually just thankful to be on the stream and able to cast, whatever Mother Nature doles out.



OK, Spence, I guess I need to say you're welcome too. But you're an honorary PA Boy anyway.

Kyle, good work.

Glad to hear you guys are out and catching at least a few fish. As I said, I haven't been out yet but it is not long, especially if we don't get slammed with a lot of rain because things are fairly low and clear right now, which bodes well for both spring fishing and hatches. I may have to start recon next week or so, our season opens on the 25th of April this year but the Rifle is mostly open right now including one of my favorite places. Might have to go throw some POG Buggers per my post on the "Woolly Bugger colors" thread and be ready for little brown stone flies which I saw three years ago in April (EHC with a brown body and tan wings, size 12-ish)...Hennies not too long from now either...Spring is coming, boys and girls (with reference to CaseyP)...

Jonathon

Yes Lewis, I remember that on my visit to PA you were casting with your other arm. Good news to hear that it's better enough for you to cast again!

In terms of the honorary PA Boy status...That's true until we get near playoff time and Antonio over in Pittsburgh has second thoughts. :)

Spence

Hehe, Spence; I was just thinking of your fishing status, not your standing as a hockey fan.