All Is Right With The World

Fished Big Fishing Creek this morning and the big boys were there just as they have been for every year in early season, along the bank mid pool and at the tail out, 16- 18" heavy bodied browns that take a #16 dark olive CDC & deer hair bubble back caddis floated over them using 5.5x Trout Hunter tippet! They take them in the morning when they are hatching then only a few will rise as the caddis move upstream for their mating later in the day, it's not really heavy but there are a lots of bugs- no Hendrickson's yet. The water is still high and cold as is Penns and Spring is still 149 cfs. at Axeman and that is just not comng down as fast as it should.
  Helped with the Spring Creek TU clean up on Spring Creek last weekend and was happy to see the amount of people who helped, grade school, high school and PSU students and not just in a few areas they were stream side and along the road the entire length of the stream, must be social media but they get the people out to help and it's a special reg. stream so much for not cleaning open water! The next time your up in Bellefonte check out the old McCoy's Dam area and see the planting's that have been done and their is another work party this Sat May 2 to repair and add more vegetation to the bank on the far side of the stream. If your close to Fisherman's Paradise check out the additional stream bank planting's that were done in April, now there will be trees to help keep the stream cool in the summer, also check out the new parking lot's- now why could we not get something like that at Penns? Drive up and check out the parking area and planting's at the "Rock" area, these guys get stuff done.
  Oop's almost forgot to tell you but the walk over bridge below Coburn is now under repairs and will have a new deck in the near future, now all we need is a structure and deck on the old "Bridge 19" above Poe Paddy if we had that we could have access via foot or bike to the entire creek (ok the tunnel is still closed?).

Little Black Caddis & We Lost a Big One

Fished Wed & Thursday at Big Fishing Creek in Lamar because it was just too nice not to, water up a bit but about normal for this time of year, water temp was 48.3(not bad but could have been better) the Forsythia are about ready to bust open and that is the sign that we will have the Little Black Caddis emerge- not quite yet! There was a small hatch both days starting about 11:00 AM and lasting till about 1:00 PM not great but just a start, the fish rose to them and took a size #18 dark olive black bubble back caddis imitation, both days I spent hours just sitting and looking and enjoying the bird songs just nice not to have tons of layers on and the sun out, look for the hatch to pick up in the next few days because of the warmer temps. I saw no sign of Hendrickson's, Blue Quills or Grannom's (you can tell if the cases are all around the shore margins), just a bit soon- think warmer.
  On Thursday I drove to Coburn just to get a good look at Penns and on my way downstream from Coburn below Stan's bridge and Teaman's cabin I was greeted with yellow no-trespassing sign's on the entire bend and below to within 50 yards of the walk over bridge at the Coburn Tunnel and on the other side of the stream! Well boys we lost a big chunk of access to Penns, saw one of the locals and asked him what the heck happened and he told me that two guys bought the land two years ago and have had numerous run In's with rude and manner less individuals not the least some of the "Guides" working for "The Crook" and others, the fellows told me that they park where ever they want and will think nothing of crowding someone out. The straw that broke the camels back was the new owners took their elderly dad of 80+ years up stream around the bend and got him in position during the Green Drake hatch only to be pushed and crowded out by these same guys who have no manners and now we see the results. Guys I have been saying this will happen some time or another if your not respecting the land owners and parking where you are not to or your a hog and not respecting some ones space when they are fishing- get smart because this will happen again and I can understand why. OK you say I have spots to fish that my be so till it gets sold and someone else sets the rules. These guys have every right to do what they did and I understand why, heck every year when I clean that parking lot I have other guys there just looking and sure as hell they never help, great for our sport! Told you so.

Score one for us!

Just got word that the PA Fish and Boat Comm. has dropped plans to change the delayed harvest rules. they must have gotten too many comments about the changes and maybe some real political pressure was put on them? I hope this means they will go back to really protecting the resource and not their jobs, maybe it is time for them to downsize to save money and not worry about one more license sale to save them from the cutting axe.
  Looks as if we will soon be having Blue Quills and Little Black Caddis on the menu for the first day and for Wed., will post something after I fish Big Fishing Creek. The rain that we had will not effect any of our streams and they should be in fine shape. Look for a great week of pre season fishing.

They are out!

Today Monday April 6th I heard the first choirs of Spring peppers and it was great to just sit there and listen to them. Last week saw some epic BWO's on Spring Creek that lasted 2 hours and every trout ate like they had nothing over the Winter! Typical BWO hatch on Spring they came off in waves, strong then just a few then in about 20 mins strong and that is normally the way the hatch goes, not every hole or run had them but the Willow Pool did and the pigs ate. Late last week we were greeted to a great midge hatch so much so they are still everywhere here at the house the trout in Spring ate them like there was no tomorrow but they did like a Grif's Gnat with a bit of action because of the mating and wind, this might go on for a few week if not at least 10 days, pick out a wind swept bank and wait for them to be blown over to it all the while the trout will eat everyone that come close. Sad but Penns is just a bit too high to join in and Big Fishing Creek is also a bit high and cold but this week might get them both warmer?
  If our weather holds we will see Blue Quills and maybe Grannom's before or on the official opening day of trout!