May 21, 2020 – A 15 Hour Tour of NEPA Bookended by a Couple Piggies – NEPA

Bookend #1

Because I fished enough for three days today, and I had both Eric and Ward along for part of the day, I will try to break this one into three movements.  Movement one began when I met young Eric at the end of my driveway at 4:15 AM, and we caravanned to the Brodhead.  Ward was leaving home around 5:45 AM and was to meet up when he arrived around 7:15-ish.  In late spring, especially if like me you tend to focus on caddis and not the mayfly du jour, the fish can be quite active early in the morning.  I wanted to fish in the gorge today because the flows were uncharacteristically low for this time of the year.  The intersection of prime bug time and low flows so that moving around the mighty Brodhead was manageable?  I could barely sleep….  However, when I figured out that Ward would be coming a bit later, I suggested an easier meeting spot, a spot he and I fished last month that is criminally loaded with spring stockers.  Well, due to some phone problems that I won’t get into in detail, we had a miscommunication, and he ended up going to a meeting spot I had suggested near the gorge.  No biggie, as he caught me on the phone around 7:20 AM, and we all took a break at the “stocky lot” around 7:30 AM.  

Same fish.  No face, but Eric took my picture today!

Eric and I fished near this pressured access from 6 to 7:30 AM before Ward, or anyone else for that matter, arrived on the scene.  It was a party later, quite literally for a while when we tailgated with a couple other fly guys, but before others started disturbing the riffles and runs, Eric and I put together a decent 90 minutes.  The culmination was me landing a big old brown trout that took a small sexy walts in about two feet of water.  It looked really good too.  I can’t be 100 percent sure it’s wild, likely not, but it was a really strong, pretty fish.  If not wild, it may have been around for 10 years!  We caught probably 15 other stocked browns and bows between us before we hiked up to meet Ward.  Throughout the day, Eric and I were throwing many of Eric’s recent ties, from big old tungsten stoneflies, to his version of the pink bead attractor I have been using, to caddis larva and walt’s worms.  I caught many fish on his creations but, go figure, the two pigs I landed were on pricey store-bought tactical flies, two of my confidence patterns, a sob Czech larva and a little hot spot CDC jig—olives and caddis covered.…    

Not many stocked browns.

Honestly, there was no wrong pattern today—we saw two varieties of caddis, size 20 olives, a few monster stoneflies (maybe yellow sallies) a couple other varieties of mayfly, including the errant sulfur or three.  As my excited insomnia foreshadowed, it proved a good day to be on the Brodhead in other words.  I brought three combos, and I fished two of them.  I spent two-thirds of the day throwing a mono rig—even when I had to switch to a thingamabobber midday, which was not a great choice, especially when I could see my vehicle in the lot.  Using 20-pound, 15-pound, 12-pound Maxima to taper down to my sighter and tippet, however, I made it work.  I learned my lesson for the third shift and used my nymphing rod with a more traditional tightline leader, which is more nimble when switching between tightlining relatively close and popping on a bobber to reach further out on a big creek like the Brodhead.

Mostly blue skies and bows for round 2.

Eric walked down to fish one last favorite hole in this pressured stretch, while I hiked up to catch up with Ward.  While Ward suited and rigged up, I refilled my water and had some calories to keep me going.  I did not have a proper meal until 8 PM, but I did take pains to keep drinking and eating some nuts, Cliff bars, banana, an apple, etcetera throughout the long day.  I even packed an iced latte for the ride home!  It was like doing my one-day tour of State College, just with a much welcomed 90 fewer minutes driving on each end.  So that Ward could get into some fish, we stuck near the parking lot for the middle part of the day, and we all caught some stocked rainbows.  When Eric and I ventured a little farther upstream, we inevitably ran into more fisherman who accessed the creek from other places.  It was a nice day and flows were advantageous, so I was not surprised.  Still, I am still not used to Saturday crowds on a weekday, and I don’t want to know what these easily accessible spots do look like on an actual Saturday.  Damn you Covid 19, damn you to hell.  

Mitches catch fishes.

Besides turning up more dudes and more pressure, our excursions away from the main stocking point did not amount to much, a few more bows, plus a massive white sucker for Eric.  We ended up spending a lot of time, perhaps too much time for my liking, maybe all of our liking, fishing a massive pod of risers.  Around 12:30 or 1 PM, I took a walk back to find Ward, and I saw a dozen or more fish taking emerging caddis in a big deep riffle—there was a horde of small dark caddis, perhaps grannoms, that got the most attention.  The olives were pretty thick too, but they were a size 20, I bet.  Even though I had just crossed the mighty Brodhead, I crossed back and started picking up stocked rainbows that were suspended up taking bugs, at first nymphing them up but eventually hanging a couple bugs under a bobber.  Eric joined us a bit later, so we all fished this pod of fish for a good bit, and we landed many.  Eric caught on his stonefly and caddis larva, and nearly all of mine came on his green caddis larva, but any bug the right size at the right depth would get eaten because I also landed a couple on a walts when I eventually lost the caddis larva unwisely lipping a particularly reluctant and rambunctious one.

Bow while the sun was low.

Ward caught one before we got on the scene and a few others after Eric and I got there, but he had a slower start, so it was he who first invoked the old, “I am good, let’s get out of here” once he had some success.  It was Eric, however, who made the first move to the parking lot, luring me with the promise of a cold(ish) beer, and Ward followed shortly thereafter.  We sat in the afternoon sun and shot the breeze for a while, eventually adding two other dudes to our social distancing party.  As the party broke up, I decided to fish some more on my own.  I had a hankering for not only trees and shade but also wild fish.  I ended up fishing for two more hours, but I only intended to target one favorite spot that is relatively easy to access but not often easy to fish in even average flows—it is an early summer and late fall spot for me, mostly, because lower flows greatly assist the success rate and—if you omit the prospect of waking the homeless residents of a tent city or two—the safety quotient. 

Trees and shade at last!

 As I mentioned above, I switched combos for this third shift, fishing my usual 10-foot three weight rigged with a more conventional euro leader.  I was excited when I saw the flows—the creek picks up the volume of two significant tributaries between here and where we fished earlier in the day, so I needed to see it to believe it—and there were still some active caddis to help the cause potentially.  I made a concerted effort here to fish some of the bugs that Eric gave me this week.  Besides fishing his green caddis larva, I also fished his golden stone.  I caught at least 4 smaller wild browns on his caddis.  I also landed a solid holdover brown and rainbow on what I call Eric’s pink bomb, his version of the pink bead pheasant tail I have been throwing with success, only his has an outsized bead.  I really love small flies that get as deep as big flies, and this fits the bill—he even puts some wraps of wire under the dubbing!   Sam would be proud because it fishes in heavier current as well as his own bottom roller caddis.  

Not wild, but a start on the pink bomb.

The flows were not high enough to give the stonefly a workout, but the two larva produced for a good hour.  Before leaving, I decided to fish some much shallower pocket water and riffles.  Over the years I have landed a few good fish on the Brodhead in these little spots that many if not most fishermen overlook.  A good, maybe twelve-inch wild brown showed himself taking an emerger in one small pocket in about a foot of water, so I switch out the pink bomb for something lighter and buggier.  I hooked and lost this fish or a neighbor on the little CDC jig I had tied on to imitate the emergers, but I did not miss the next fish who ate.  In shallow water, this pig thought he had nowhere to go but up in the air at first.  He got his big body out of the water three times in short succession.  

Small wild browns on Eric's caddis larva.

I almost pooped my pants, when he figured out that he could also make a run for it.  I was out in the middle of the creek, in current, so he had the upper hand.  He ranged around one side of the creek and then the other, and I had to chase him downstream a good thirty feet while trying not to fall and while dragging a prematurely detached landing net, but it all worked out.  What better way to end a marathon than with a strong kick, you know?  I was in no position to move around too much or wade to shore dragging the fish in the net, plus it was a longer fight, so I did not measure and instead did my best to get a quick release.  I would not venture 20, but it was well over 18 based on my experience, and it was a fish that lives in big water most of the year, so he was broad, heavy, and strong.  I wish he had eaten one of Eric’s bugs, but I fell back on a confidence fly and for good reason, obviously.  It was probably 5:30 PM by now so, while the temptation to keep fishing was there, I was also realistically thinking that the odds of it getting better than this were slim.  In addition to this fish, I had landed 7 or 8 fish during the third shift, so the numbers were there too.  Anything else would be silly or selfish or something. 

Worth clocking in for a third shift!

I had to do more wading and bushwhacking through knotweed and floodwater-deposited timber to find a path out, and on the walk out I found yet another net on the Brodhead.  This is the third landing net that I have scavenged from this watershed.  Two of them are actually in rotation too!  I posted about all of them on the fly fish forum, and someone found one through this blog, in fact, but unlike the other nets this one looks to be a bit more special to someone, maybe even handmade or artisan made.  If no one claims it, I may have to replace the basket and work this one into the mix.  Watch your nets because the Brodhead likes to steal and hide them from you, apparently.   I made it back to the ‘Ru in one piece with my new net and, after drinking a can of caffeine and drinking what little water I had left, I ended my 15 hour tour of NEPA with a quiet ride home and the realization that, despite not taking a lot of pictures, this was going to be one long blog post….

Another shot of bookend #2

May 17, 2020 – A Glorious Morning of Solitude and Fish – SEPA

Just a lot of small wild fish this morning.....

I was on the road before 5 AM this morning, hoping to find some space for myself on a Berks County limestone-influenced creek that I have not visited since January of this year.  I arrived right at sunrise and was a bit disappointed for a moment when a young guy pulled into a spot along the road behind me, but I quickly learned he had spinning gear and shorts on and, like most visitors to this spot, he headed right for the most convenient hole.  While I respected his commitment to the early morning bite following yesterday’s heat, he was not heading where I was heading.   This creek is stocked each spring, but without any assistance from the public this year, I had my suspicions that a load of them were just dumped at the bridge.  I was looking for wild fish and holdovers away from the access point, anyway, and I was actually expecting that some favorite holes did not get stocked this year and hoping that wild fish and/or survivors had taken up residence instead.  I do well with wild fish in the fall and winter here sometimes, but the creek does have decent spring hatches too.  No risers this morning, but a caddis emergence did turn on some good fishing.  The biggest fish were the holdovers, by far, but I must have landed close to 30 wild browns up to 11 inches in addition to the 3 or 4 holdovers.  I was using the mono rig again with rather small bugs, a sob Czech larva on the point and pinky, a little pt/hares ear combo with the pink tungsten bead, on the dropper, both size 16.  In a couple particularly deep holes, I used an equally heavy larva on the dropper, just in a brown or more ginger color—all pretty simple bugs (well, short of that pink bead).

There's this guy I know who complains when I don't post creek pics....

I caught a small wild brown right near my parking spot on one of my first casts, followed by a chub, one of a handful of those today.  I was fishing a mono rig on my 10-foot 4 weight rod, which I have not fished much this year (yet) so I just wanted to get the kinks out before moving upstream.  I like to throw the 4 weight on the larger NEPA rivers, so I wanted to give that set up some reps before I use it on potentially larger wild fish on bigger water.  I know my 3 weight nymphing rod can handle quite a bit, even dries, but it probably shouldn’t throw a streamer—or stoneflies under a big old bobber either, for that matter.   I doubt I lost any ground by switching rods.  For one, I used this rod for probably 4 years of seventy or eighty trips and did just fine.  It has a slower action too, which may have even been better for the more delicate mono rig. 

A more recent stocker (though white tips on fins already).

The flows were good this morning, and the weather was warm but cooler than the previous two days.  Still, I had a feeling that fish would be active early with how hot it got on Saturday and the relatively mild overnight temps.  Small caddis were around too, and they got more active as the morning progressed.  Still pretty close to the ‘Ru, but fishing “for real” now, I hooked the only brown of the day that looked like a spring stocker.  He was already using wood for cover, so I may see him again this year, maybe next!  After a couple more small wild browns, I hooked into a hot fish in a narrow, deeper run.  She fought like a wild one, but even though she looked great, there were several signs she was a longer-term holdover: no eye spot, too many fused black spots on the body, etc.  Still, with all the little guys I landed today, it was nice to hook into a porkier holdover once in a while.  In fact, I was disappointed that a few favorite holes that usually hold fish for a long while gave up nothing today.  Many boot prints at a couple of them was a dead giveaway.  I just worry that since no fresh stockies were placed in a couple of them that dudes were keeping long time holdovers or, far worse, wild ones for the table!  I have seen it here before.  The shear number of wild trout, though small, made up for any minor disappointments today, however.

Been around a while....

There was a lot storm damage, some new since I was last here in January, I believe, but the added deadfalls and scours added some new spots or reestablished some old favorites.  I caught wild fish in places I had not in the past, so I look forward to what the fall holds for this creek once they grow a bit more.  I did land some decent ones, however, like the one that opens this post and the long skinny one below.  The creek can be sandy, so the fish don’t always have the most remarkable colors, but a couple of them were damn cute today.  I did not take a lot of fish pictures, just a few representative shots of size categories or a particular pretty one.  I did not get a shot of the likely best wild brown I tangled with—I dropped that at the net after a really fun battle in a deep hole—but it was twelve inches at best.  It made the battle of the stocker I caught in the same hole minutes earlier embarrassing! 

Darn cute for this creek.

I got to play around in some challenging spots, tucking flies under overhanging trees and over logs, but I only lost one set of flies in a tree when that better wild one popped off under tension.  I even caught a few on the swing when the swing was the only way to get my bugs into likely holding water.  The only way they could have been more cooperative would have been by showing themselves with a rise form once in a while.  I did land a smallmouth, my first of 2020, however, after he showed himself with a rise.  The hole where he came up was flatter and deeper, so I popped on a bobber, and he tried to eat that.  I landed him on the next cast on a size 16 sob larva, so he was hungry.  Man, just like the wild browns, even a 12-inch specimen of smallmouth can pull! 

Wanted the bobber but settled for a larva.

I ran into expected posted signs shortly after landing this novelty, so I started heading back.  It was the second stop at a particularly deep run and hole, one where I had already landed at least 5 smaller wild browns, where I messed with another stocker and the aforementioned better wild fish.  I also landed another plump little guy in the same hole, so this was a hot hole that gave up like 8 fish!  I also landed multiple fish at a second stop to fish another hole that had already produced.  I was holding out hope for a good one, another good one that I could photograph, so I stopped at one last favorite spot that was disappointing the first time through but often gives up a decent fish.  No dice this time either.  I really could not complain, though.  I messed with a lot of fish in under 5 hours of fishing, and 85 percent of them were wild.  Instead of fishing my way back, I decided at about 11 AM to just hike on back with my bugs in the hook keeper.

Some plumpers of different origins

I can’t tell yet if the forecasted rain will present opportunities this week or ruin them.  It appears that it could just be cloudy with some showers, so little impact at all.  I am tied up all day on Tuesday and Wednesday with work, but I am thinking about Thursday already.  Eric has been tying like a fiend and wants to revisit our spot, and Wardman, who had success on his own with a new combo last week, also wants to get out again.   In other words, more fishing will happen this week, busy, rainy, or not.  I don’t mind the company, but it was therapeutic to get a quiet, successful trip alone today, especially on a weekend.  

Did I mention a lot of  small wild browns?

May 13, 2020 – It Was Touch and Go There for a While – SEPA Blueline

A great day for humans but tougher fishing conditions today.

Eric and I nearly had our arses handed to us today by some spooky wild browns with lockjaw.  Thankfully, we put together a half decent second half and landed a few fish, including two nicer ones.  We caravanned over to our Covid 19 spot, our little private stretch of heaven (sometimes).  This is the fourth time this year, and I would rank this visit third out of four in terms of success.  As Eric stated today, we are learning this creek, and every time out has been a different experience.  The first visit was a winter foray just to explore, and we landed a couple fish.  The second time was during a caddis hatch, with fish rising everywhere, and we tore them up.  The third time was a day of bigger fish, but only one or two at each prime spot.  Today, well, today was a sunny late morning following a couple cold overnights, and the water was lower and clearer than we have experience before.  Had we seen more bugs alight, we may have gone to dry dropper, but the fish we did catch were mostly deep, in the shade, and close to cover.  A rare exception was the one or two active fish in the riffles near cover.  I had a couple small dark caddis land on my hand while on the bank, and we saw a couple larger tan caddis flying, but they could have been stirred from the bankside vegetation by the breeze, in other words another day’s brood. 

We knew we had to catch one at this hole eventually this spring!

We just kept plugging along, acting as cheerleaders, saying some form of, It’s going to happen, it’s going to happen.  I had my doubts.  To borrow one of Sam nuggets, wild fish can be dicks.  They were not feeling it at all for the first two hours, I bet.  And because the hits were so light and so few and far between, we both miffed on an early chance or two.  I finally caught the first fish, all of 5 inches long, while sneaking up the tributary where I landed a monster holdover brookie last visit.  We decided not to spend too much time here, opting to try and redeem the day at two great holes on the main branch.  Well, I missed my shot at what might have been a good one at the first honey hole, the bend pool where Eric landed a good one last visit.  I almost felt like I stuck a fish somewhere besides the mouth with my dropper the way the line just shot downstream, but it also could have been an embarrassed pig.  We did not get to find out today.  Eric let me try the next hole too, where we have done well and where we believe I dropped the king of this stretch of the creek last visit. 

...and we did.  Eric's better fish.

With the water lower and clearer, we got a better glimpse of this bend pool, anyway.  No fish even spooked, but we collected better intel for next visit.  What we thought was a log the last two times, is actually a shelf of rock or a partially buried boulder that may have been placed for cover or simply removed from a nearby farm field.  It is much less perilous to drift bugs next to a boulder than a log, so lessons for next time.  Eric also ventured upstream and found another couple of good holes.  He got bounced by what he thought was a good one in a very technical hole with all kinds of wood in it and over it.  When he had to go in to retrieve his bugs from a snag eventually, I saw him spook a couple fish, though nothing huge.  In the flat above this spot, I also prompted three more fish to shoot under an undercut bank, so at least we confirmed a couple more spots to try when the conditions are more favorable.  Like Valley and other small, clear creeks, a little stain and little extra flow goes a long way, especially if the bug activity is not enough to coax them out, which was the case today.  Unlike Valley, this spot sees very little traffic, so the fish are even more skittish.

Redemption fish.

At least the fish were starting to eat, so we did catch a handful on the retreat.  In a spot where I swore to Eric on at least two occasions that a fish had to live, he landed a nice one, probably 10 inches and beautiful.  I also landed another at the next spot, but not before getting bounced at least two times and not connecting.  Dicks, I tell you!  It was Eric who suggested that we throw a hail mary and visit a spot downstream of where we parked.  We landed a good fish here once, and I connected with a good one for about two seconds one other time.  Today, I did not miss.  This was a strong, beautiful fish and an awesome way to salvage an otherwise challenging trip.  It was not broad like a couple of the fish we caught earlier this year, but it was 12 inches long and gave quite a tussle in tight quarters.  

Another shot of the same fish above.

Eric was looking out for me, offering this redemption, and he was rewarded himself with another fish to end on.  I got one more little guy here before we decided we’d had enough.  The only thing certain is that this little place will be different next time too!  It was great day to be out, and a mental challenge to overcome for the two of us, who had been totally spoiled the last two visits.  I am looking forward to getting out on some of my favorite larger creeks now that we are in mid-May and another warm up is coming, but this place has been the right creek for the right season, so I am certainly not mad at it!

One more for Eric on the bow and arrow before we called it a day.

May 8, 2020 – Almost Alone with the Wild Browns – Northampton County Limestoner

Not the biggest of the day, but the prettiest (and one of the clearer shots in low light and drizzle).

Perhaps because I had a beer at 10:30 or 11 PM last night, my sleep pattern was off.  Instead of getting up to piss at 3 AM or later, I was up shortly after falling asleep, and one other time in the night.  I heard Tami, who never sleeps well, in the shower around 5:30 AM, so I walked to the powder room at that time and just stayed up.  I had the idea of fishing in the back of my mind, but no set plan.  After coffee, I decided to gamble on a small stream a little less than an hour from home.  I was on the road by 6:30 AM and fishing by 7:30 AM.  I probably had over a dozen fish in the first 90 minutes too, well over 20 by the time I quit at 11 AM.  I also had that first 90 minutes or more to myself.  I only saw one other dude out later in the morning, a spinner guy, and he kept his distance, but we were fishing the same general area, unfortunately.  I don’t think he jumped ahead of me—more likely that he was just fishing down while I was fishing up—but his presence did take away a couple undisturbed opportunities.  He was probably thinking the same thing about me.

They were lookers today!

The creek was stained with good flows, so I fished a bigger jig, a red tag fly in size 14, on the point and that little pink bead pt on the dropper—two tungsten bugs to get down quickly.  Instead of going right for my usual first stop, I decided to try another deep run downstream that does not always produce.  I am not always on this creek so early, at least not in the spring (summer for sure) so I thought I would see if that would make a difference.  I would like to tell you that I landed or even moved a piggy, but I can’t.  I did catch at least three fish in this run, however, including a couple 10 to 11 inchers with great, unique colors.  I also landed a couple equally beautiful small stream fish at the next hole while still avoiding my usual first spot.  Five fish in a very short time, especially before I had even reached my confidence spots, boded well for the morning.  There were no bugs visible, not even midges, so I had to dig the fish out of deeper and/or bouncier water, and that trend continued for the morning.  I did not even get a hit at the deep hole I had intentionally saved, and by the time I decided to fish it again before I left for home, the spinner dude had already fished it at least once, so I was happy that I took the early detour to confirm a hunch.

Parred up too?

I fished my next favorite run slowly and with intention.  I was disappointed, though not surprised, that the end of the run only produced a few very small trout.  Some days when bugs are hatching, the larger fish suspend up in the back of this run and some days when other bugs are hatching, the larger fish set up right in the shallow riffles closer to the head.  Today, they did neither.  Much like they would act on a warm summer morning, the two largest fish I landed here, the two largest of the day, in fact, were right up in the deep riffle using the depth and the soft edge of the plunge just to ride it out in ease and comfort.  When I got the bugs down close to the bottom, they did eat, but it took some work.  In fact, after landing maybe 5 fish here, I decided to hunt around for some split shot to see if I could find one of the good fish that sometimes show in this run.  I have caught them over 16 inches here in recent years.

Skinny hen, pinky, red tag.

With a large split shot on just above my point fly, I was basically drop-shotting the pinky fly for a few very fruitful casts.  The productive part of the drift consisted of all of two feet or two seconds, but the fish were there as I predicted.   I landed a skinny hen that was about 11 inches, and I had to delete blurry pictures of another fish over 12 inches.  But I did manage to capture two decent shots of the biggest fish of the day.  I would estimate he was 15 inches, which is a nice fish for this little creek.  He had a big old toothy head and fought like a tough guy too.  With all the overhanging trees and shrubs, I had to ease him back down into the hole in order to land him, and thank goodness I remembered to keep my legs closed because, sure enough, he gave that evasive maneuver a try too.  I was really happy about these fish, especially this last one, because I took the time to make needed adjustments to my presentation, and it paid dividends. 

A couple decent shots of the tough guy.

Some shallow riffles that often produce gave up nothing, but I did manage to land a brook trout in the flat hole above them.  I landed one smaller than this one a visit or two ago to this same creek, which is not stocked.  I believe they get in from a private club upstream or some local organization doing it on the sly like what happens on the Bushkill.  I have also landed a couple massive, tagged rainbows here, so I am leaning towards escapees, but I really don’t know.  It was a decent sized fish and was fun to catch.  I saw what I thought was a fish dimpling the surface a couple times as I approached the hole, so I clipped off my dropper and just tied on a small CDC jig.  I made a couple casts near where I thought I had seen the rise, and sure enough I landed this fish just using a slight pause in my leader as an indication that a fish had taken—the nymphing leader is more versatile than it often gets credit for; I have even landed fish on a dry fly without changing it out! 

Really tried to get a good shot of the better one!

I landed some more fish before I reached the place where I usually turn back, but I was seeing too much of the other dude.  He had gotten to the last spot I usually target before me and, while I did not see him land a fish, I could not coax anything larger than 8 or 9 inches out of there once he had fished it and continued walking downstream.   Like I said, he did his best to avoid, and I did the same, but I did not arrive at a couple favorite spots first this morning, and the first lure in the water was a big piece of metal not a dainty little pink bead.…  I had already landed over 20 fish, and I could see him stopping to make casts on his way down, so I figured this had to be good enough.  The rain had started by 10:45 AM, anyway, and I was not prepared—on purpose.  I figured I would quit once it started raining in earnest, so I ended just a bit sooner than planned, I guess, but not before having a pretty successful short trip.  Fittingly enough, my older neighbor needed room in his fridge for food, so he gave me about 12 more beers this afternoon.  Maybe I should have a couple and get up early to toss a streamer tomorrow?  I think I will just sleep in….

Targeted a riser and found this lost fella.

May 3, 2020 – Tom and I Find Some More Elbow Room – SEPA Freestoner

A pretty and warm spring morning in the woods.

The Silver Fox has invited me out fishing for the last couple of weekends, and I either had fishing plans or was busy or didn’t want to mess with Valley Creek. We have not been out together since our early season Pocono trip, pre-Covid.  With my urging, because you know I am all about avoiding the crowds this season, we agreed to meet this morning at his favorite little brookie/brown Class A an hour and change from home, and we picked a pretty good day.  Tom loves to fish this spot with a dry dropper later in the spring and early summer, and we have had a couple good days doing that, but I convinced him that some bugs would show today and fish might even look up.  I lied, but not on purpose.  Perhaps because some light rain I did not expect overnight, plus more rain during the morning drive, gave them a good dousing, we did not see caddis or any mayflies moving about in the morning.  Midges, yes, gnats, yes.  I am not sure this is an extremely fertile creek, being a mountain freestoner for much of its length, but I did see caddis the last spring trip we made here.  Despite the absence of rising fish or visible bugs, fish were eating well though.  I fished a pair of tungsten bugs on a tight line and caught a mess of small brookies and browns, even a couple decent ones too.  Tom also got into the action in earnest once we stopped back at the parking spots for him to grab another rod.  He has been working with me and putting the time in alone tightline nymphing, and I have witnessed the development, but as you can see from the photos, this is a tight creek and a little “technical” as hip fly guys and YouTubers are wont to say.  Still, I saw him catch a dozen fish and miss/drop a couple beauties!

Tiny and tight SGL blueline.

Instead of heading right for a few of his go-to spots, we bushwhacked downstream a good distance to fish some water that I had never fished before.  While not posted, it is closer to some homes and farms, so while Tom has fished it before, it is not a stretch he has fished often.  We peeped some nice looking holes on the walk down, however.  They all produced too.  We had a good start to the morning, especially me, the guy with the tungsten bugs getting to the bottom of a couple good, deep holes and the heavier riffles near deep holes.  I landed the best brown of the day, and the best brookie too, within the first 45 minutes of fishing.  We caught a lot more fish right up until quitting time around 1:30 PM, but the size of the first few fish outclassed most of the others by far.  I was just tossing a pheasant tail with a pink bead on the dropper and a gingery brown sob larva on the anchor.  The brookies loved the pink bead, but I think the browns mostly ate the bottom roller.  I gave Tom a pinky to fish under his dry to start, and he fished it as one of his flies when he nymphed too, and he caught fish on it too. 

Beautiful colors.

After some early surprises, and Tom’s decision to retool before heading to his hot spots, we took a short break at the vehicles.  Tom rigged up his 9 footer to nymph and I, who had declined to use a rest stop on the way this morning, took some napkins and “sat down” al fresco.  It’s been a while, and Eric probably jinxed me by having to retire to the woods last week, but I would rather steer clear of rest stop bathrooms right now.  More fun times due to Covid concerns!  Now ready to commit to nymphing the slightly higher flows, we worked through some of Tom’s favorite spots along the creek.  In arguably the best hole in this stretch, he was at the plate and nearly landed the best brookie of the day.  It looked to be 9 or 10 inches.  He lost one more along the way that was also a beauty, and I lost a nicer one as well when the fish had the dropper but managed to snag my anchor fly on a mossy rock when he ran to shallower riffles.  There are a lot of variables to consider on a creek that is 10 feet wide with a birch canopy!   I would not have it any other way, however.  It makes you a better fisherman to target these little spots, especially in the category of awareness.  Not only do you have to weigh out how (or even if) you can make the cast, then you have to think where does the rod go for hookset, and finally can I land this thing and where.  As Tom said, it is also a team sport, your successes are shared because you take turns at spots, maybe even defer to your partner when you feel ill-equipped to address a particular spot or a particular spot at this particular time. 

Best brown, best brookie (landed, that is).

It was hot and humid for early May.  I was in a t-shirt for the second shift, and even that was getting damp from the uphill climb.  The final third of this beat is not as productive numbers wise, but Tom alone has pulled some better fish from the odd deep pocket or two, and I had a similar experience with him one summer in this stretch of the creek.  There was some storm damage in places, but also some new and newly scoured plunges below deadfalls.  A couple times I pulled half a dozen fish, mostly under 5 inches, out of these spots, but at a few memorable plunges, I also found a better brown or brookie in the mix.  We have landed browns to 11 inches on this creek, and brook trout to 10 as well, but today we had to be content for the most part with fat 6 to 8 inchers.  They have been eating well and will get longer by summer’s end.  Most were bulldogs digging for cover, but we had leapers too—rewards for the hard work of sneaking and sweating our way through the woods.

Pinky.

I promised to be home before 3 PM, so we quit at 1:30 PM, but not until after landing a couple more fish on a second visit on the hike back to a select few holes.  Folks were out walking, riding motorcycles, even giving the Clydesdales a trot, but we had a good quiet five hours on the water.  It was not the kind of success Tom was hoping for, that I had bribed him into expecting, but fish were eating well, so no complaints here.  In another month, I think Tom will get his wish for dry dropper conditions, and I hope he brings me along.  Even without the desire to fish spots off the beaten path multiplied by the current situation in the world, I still love to sneak around little creeks like this.  This will not be the last time this spring that you see a post about some small unnamed crick with pretty wild and native fish, that I can almost guarantee.  I have a lot of grading to get done this week, and a couple remaining work-related projects that must be completed, but I am hoping to get out at least once this week and once over the upcoming weekend.  Beaches are about to be in play soon.  I know they are open now, so water temps- and weather-permitting, I am itching to catch a bass or a racer blue in the surf, as well.

A pretty one to end on the sob larva anchor fly.