February 23 and 24, 2022 – Just One Way to Try Harder? – A Few SEPA Cricks

A little dirty at both creeks.

For two hours on Wednesday, I had no excuse not to catch at least one.  Although with my late start, there was a chance that someone had already been through the runs I fished and left.  Again, I had late class on Tuesday night, but I got out the door a little after 9 AM and was fishing one of two Northampton County limestoners that would offer me nothing but frustrations, crowds, then wind and high sun, for my effort.  I was actually shocked that the parking for creek one had no one in it, but that changed by noon, and it chased me off to another creek.  I know it was 70 degrees, but is it a huge ask to get a little elbow room on a Wednesday?  There were two fly guys, one sneaking below and another high-holing me by 11:45 AM, and I spoke to two other dudes in the lot as I was quitting, one was a fly guy and the other thought a spinner might move these pressured fish at noon!  Granted, he couldn’t have done any worse than me.

Sun and dirty water = bad.

Anyway, I took a 15 minute drive to another creek in the county, and I found some open water, at least, although there was a dude fishing at one parking spot.  I would like to say that this move did the trick, but by now the nice day had gotten challenging.  It was warm to start, but it was getting really cold fronty by 1 PM.  I did not get a touch in an hour on this creek and, even though Tami would have gone home to meet the boy after school, I decided to keep my appointment with his bus for 2:45 PM.  Water was dirty at both creeks, but it was not great streamer weather with the sun—I tried, of course!  In fact, I went for broke at least part of the time at both creeks before trying my nymphing hand too.  Nothing.  A solid midday skunking at two creeks I know far, far too well.

Bad weather gave me some solitude, but deer were not happy to see me.

Today was cold and a little sleety with more icy mix on the way in the evening.  What better day to try and find a veritable unicorn!  The little crick I fished today was stocked up until maybe 15 years ago.  I don’t think access was an issue.  It was more about usage.  I believe the Commish stocked, and two guys fished it.  Anyway, it has been on the wild reproduction list for some time, maybe always had a small population even when it was stocked.  I used to visit when I worked in the area just to see the wild trout once in a while, but today I had two hours to kill, so I decided to try and catch at least one.  I knew that being off the radar and in this crappy weather, I would have no problem getting some solitude, and I was right.  I put my waders on at home, though.  Maybe part of me was embarrassed to suit up streamside for such an endeavor?  I only had to contend with the gazes of one elderly couple out for a walk, and they did not seem to find me crazy.  I wasn’t.  I actually found one unicorn, and it was not a bad size for a small freestone creek either.  First, however, I swore I moved a rainbow.  It may have been a really bright brown in retrospect, especially looking at the pale colors of the wild brown I landed, but at the time, I was thinking that someone must be stocking on the sly or something.  One thing I have learned in my many years of trout fishing is to never be surprised where stockies end up.

Might add some ugly, tough, and a little wanderlust to the gene pool?

The water was crystal clear and winter low, so I knew fish would be deep and close to structure.  I spooked another darker fish from under a rock, and he actually poked his head out a bit later to take a look but not a swipe at the jigged bugger.  There were more of these big rocks, so I tucked another cast above one, and as the bugger dropped towards the bottom, a hook-jawed pig came out and ate it.  The water was cold, so the fight was not epic by any means, and he was pretty contained in the hole where he lived, but it was fun.  I was also pissed when I got a good look at him, like dammit someone really must have stocked this creek!  First I thought I moved a rainbow, and now this guy.  Chances are, however, that the proximity to the river had just as much to do with it.  These fish get into the river from other stocked creeks, and then seek thermal refuge in the tributaries.  For the creeks that were never stocked, for example, this is likely how small populations of wild fish take hold.  Most stocked trout are females, so I let this male go and handled him with care.  Maybe he can muddy up the pale, lovely gene pool that is already here….

Eric's jigged bugger, from a distance in the glassy water.

That was confusing and fun, but I was still looking for a different sort of unicorn.  At the base of a deep plunge, I found what I was looking for.  I almost missed the hit on the fall, but I saw the flash, paused a second, and set.  I had been trying to use my 3 weight to drag a floating branch out of the way of the sweet, soft spot.  I missed, but the fish grabbed it anyway, and somehow I was able to avoid wrapping and losing the only wild brown of the day and the reason for this excursion in the cold. It was a skinny fish, but pretty decent sized and just beautiful.  Pale, as you can see, but also parr marks and a bright telltale blue spot on the cheek.  I worked this hole for a while longer, but did not see any more.  Chances are fish were hiding up in the ledges of the plunge and under the big boulders.  With the clarity of the water, I was able to see a couple more fish at another stretch clear as day, so I am sure I would have noticed any others here staged up and hovering for a meal.

The unicorn, although I did see a couple others, so not that rare!

As I mentioned above, I tried for a second time another hole where I spooked one by accident, and he did peek his head out from cover once, but only once.  I decided that mission was accomplished, but I had about an hour more to fish, so I drove and looked for more legal parking.  I found some, and I even had another good size trout move for the bugger in a deep, clear hole.  I rerigged here and put a couple small nymphs on in case there was a pod of fish in there, but that one fish spooked and only one other smaller fish spooked out of the tailout of the same hole on my way back.  Two is not a pod, but it was the kind of day where they were in hiding.  The presence of a blue heron hopscotching in front of me for a while may have had them on notice even if there was a stain and more flow.  I also saw all kinds of signs of deer and eventually spooked two who were bedded down avoiding the snow and rain.  I took a few pics of them climbing a ridge towards the highway or private property before heading back to the ‘Ru.  Air temps permitting, I may sneak out tomorrow too.  Even though it’s a Friday, it sounds just miserable enough to deter a few eager anglers.  Wishful thinking, as I saw olives on the two creeks I fished on Wednesday, so they are probably showing on Valley too, and so the spring games have begun!  I guess I just have to try harder to find some elbow room....