November 2 and 6, 2017 – Tully, Manny, Meh – A Few Stops in Berks County

The other kind of rainbow, somewhere over in Berks County.

In an effort to give spawning fish a break and this year’s babes a chance, I made an attempt to fish for stocked trout last week on the Tulpehocken.  It did not take long to remember why I rarely fish the Tully!  This was a Thursday—a pleasant, warm Thursday, mind you—and the place was packed!  I found 3 to 6 cars at every pull off and lot within the DHALO section.  I saw anglers in every hole I drove by or stopped in; it was ridiculous and, if I hadn’t driven nearly an hour, I would have gone home.  I ended up fishing for a pod of fish bulging the water for midges and landing two of them right at the Reber’s Bridge, not my favorite place to fish.  I also hooked a couple others on the midge, and I even landed another on a bugger when I got tired of fishing slow water with an indicator.  The only photo from the day is of a likely rabid or injured raccoon loitering in the parking lot, as I inadvertently left the phone in the car after taking a couple pics of him while I was suiting up.  Not much to see, anyway, three recently stocked fish of 10 to 12 inches.

No one told Rocky he's supposed to be nocturnal?

I was not enthused to fish on Friday last week, and daylight savings time and couple of drinks on Saturday put Sunday on ice, so today was the next opportunity to fish.  Rain was in the forecast, and had me a little excited, but it never amounted to much.  I may have gotten slightly damp once around 1 PM as I snuck around the Manatawny looking for holdovers or a few wild browns.  I was hoping a steady rain or thunderstorm would come through, but neither happened.  I did get to take photos of some cows, a snake, and a rainbow (in the sky), though.  I guess I was just trying to enjoy the experience on a warm November day.  I drove past a favorite little trickle that comes alive in the rain, but it was low and clear, so I committed to finding a couple on the Manny, which I did, including a nice 12 inch wild brown that fought well after taking a caddis dropper in a deep, leaf littered hole.

Snakes on a bridge.

I kept getting interrupted by work-related calls and emails, which I took as a sign to head home after a couple hours of walking and casting.  There was no bug life this afternoon and no signs of redds, but I didn’t cover much ground.  It sounds silly, but I am hoping for cold, nasty weather so the fair-weather anglers hang it up for the year!  I like winter fishing, even the tedium of hunkering in a hole with midges, because I often have the creeks to myself.  This just feels like limbo!

I am also getting my surf gear together, hoping a fall run of bass materializes.  The warm weather isn’t helping there, either, but they have to move eventually.  I just hope there are enough of them to warrant the long drives and ghastly early mornings now that the clocks have fallen back!  I am home with the boy on Election Day, and I am working Wednesday and Friday, but maybe Thursday will be my next trip this week?  At the very least, I will toss some plugs in the not too distant future, as I have a boys/drinking weekend in Bradley Beach and Asbury Park this upcoming weekend.  It will begin the process of getting the kinks out in anticipation of the real fall and, hopefully, a fall run, too.

A fish pic: a nice wild brown from a marginal section of the creek.

A creek pic: because Ron likes them!