Hope for the bettter

If you take a look at the USGS stream gauges for our area you will notice some very disturbing trends, low water for this time of year. It appears that we are going to have another low water year for the early season and who knows when the rains will come, I'll bet it will be during the Drake season then we will go dry. Our weather is off from the normal, yes we have a good amount of snow left on the mountains and it has melted as it should, little by day then freezing up at night but we do need some liquid to fall and get our streams up to more normal levels. look I love the lower water for this time of year but worry about later in the year. Heck Penns is down and that will not help for the future or what normally happens all the hatches come at once if the water warms to a above normal level, we saw this a couple of years ago and it was great while it lasted if you could get there when the main hatch comes off but miss it by a few days and they're gone for the year.
  Let's just hope we get some rain and keep it coming just enough to keep our streams in good shape. Just got some news that the rainbows in Spring Creek are on the redds, watch out for them!

Important Dates

Some dates to keep in mind for Spring. April 26th @ 9:00 AM in the Union County Sportsman's Club's parking lot R.B. Winter Chapter Trout Unlimited will begin the annual Penns Creek cleanup, I think it might be a 10 year anniversary for this event, please join us. Our numbers have never been large but the amount of items that we remove from the stream is amazing, it never ceases to make me wonder how all that plastic makes it out into the environment and it our streams, seems some people have never seen a trash can, please join us.
   April 22 & 23 please join The Spring Creek Chapter of Trout Unlimited complete the West bank stabilization of Spring Creek above the former McCoy Dam below Bellefonte at the former dam site, check www.springcreektu.org for details and a sign up sheet. They will have a fire company there to shuttle us across Spring Creek, if you know where this is, you need help crossing.
  This week has been black midges & little black stoneflies hatching everywhere, what are waiting for-GO. Have also fished to a wonderful BWO hatch on Spring Creek, #20 really dark Bateis, they ate like pigs, again this is not universal but a specific local event, find them and enjoy.

SOMETHING TO READ today- check out Gink and Gasoline web site for today and read his commentary on taking pictures of fish and killing said fish, brilliant and to the point. I agree with him 100%- what do you guys think?

Sign of the times

With sadness I just finished reading Fly Fisherman Magazine's article about the health of fly shops and noticed among the casualties was Kauffman's Streamborn in OR, that truly is sad. On any given day you could call them and ask for a special item or color of hackle/ fur and be certain that you would get it. Seems as if too many Bass Pro Shops and Cabela's have turned customers away from really good shops or maybe it was just a hassle to worry everyday if you could make payroll that week. If you find a good shop either local or on the net by all means spread the word and keep them going, if there is a bad one -well just don't support it no matter how much you need that thread or fur. The bad ones give the entire industry a very bad rap.
  OK it's time to fish, by this weekend we will be in the 40's BUT stay away from Spring Creek at this time of year, the bait and spinner guys are all over and it becomes just a pain in the ass to even look at them. Remember that at some time in March some streams are off limits- Bald Eagle is one of them. Big Fishing Creek is a great option and a #16 little black stone fly nymph is a great choice.