"Live to be OnTheWater"
2Bonthewater Guide Service
Historic Oley Valley
Oley, PA 19547
vinny
December 22, 2010
Fished Antietam Lake again. Theentire lake has at least3.5 inches of ice. The areas that were 2.5 inches on Sunday, were 3.5 on Wedesday. One inch of ice in 3 days !!!It wasreal windy most of the day and I spent more time in the EskimoQuick Fish 3.The two holes in the shelter provided some steady action for perch and bluegills. I drilled plenty of holes and hole hopped. The death lull kicked in around1230 and fishing picked back up again at 3pm.I landed the usual residents of the lake-- a few trout, afew nice crappies, perch and gills. Most of the day I used asmall jigging spoon tipped with spikes or waxies. The fish really love the lures that GLOW !!!
It was a good day OnTheHardWater. My shoulders would beg to differ. Not sure when I'll be out again, but my guess is maybe in 2-3 weeks. Can't ice fish if you can't drill holes !!!!
December 19, 2010
Started at 8am and stayed at Antietam unitl about 3pm. Plenty ofpanfish with a few perch hitting the 9-inch mark and a crappie thatwas almost 10 inches.I caught trout sporadically throughout the day, ending with 9. The biggest trout came undone at the hole. A few other fellers were on the ice. Most were nice and respectful, some--well I just don't understand some people. Last fishcaught was a trout at 255 pm. I drilled a few holes and just kept hole hopping. There is only a smallportion of the lake that has safe ice. Most of the lake is covered with 2.5 inches of ice. The area ofgood ice has a thicknessof 4-5 inches. I was fishing alongside Antietam Road.
Please don't litter !!!
December 18, 2010
Went to Antietam Lake in the AM to check the ice. Ice was over 4-inches thick. Took a quick ride home, ate lunch, dressed the kids and out the door we went. Drilled a few holes and the kids were bored immediately. Zoe managed to land one yellow perch and I let Vinny reel in 2 yellow perch. We didn't have any bait, so we just used jigs. We only fished for about an hour, probably not even that long. It was nice to be on the ice. I'll be out bright and early tomorrow morning. Heading to the dreaded Big C to hopefully get my hands on some bait.
December 16, 2010
Took the ice fishing gear out of the man cave onlytohave the wonderful smell of stink bugs fill the air. I called my deputy and asked if he saw the lake yet? He said, NO, but he is checking the mail in a little bit and will take a look at it. Teddy told me the lake is completed covered and the ice might be about 1 inch orso.Teddy has patrolled and lived next toAntietam Lakealmostall his life and he knows the lake. I will get out this weekend and drill a hole or two. Check back for an ice report.
The air temperatures at night have been in the teens. The temp when the wife went to work the other day was 10 degrees.
December 07, 2010
The idea was to stop at Rick's Bait and Tackle and pick up a few jig-heads and hit Ontelaunee Lake. Welp, Rick's is now closed and for sale. Total Bummer. I had one jig-head and fished that until I Iost it. The wind was insane and the temp had to be in the mid-20's with the windchill. I was bundled up and then some. I managed to catch one crappie and lost another. I fished for about 1/2 an hour. I tried to use makeshift jigs, but I didn't have enough split shots with me. It was still fun to be out.
November 13, 2010
Winter Stocking dates as per PFBC website:
Berks County
Antietam Lake -- November 17
Kaercher Creek Dam -- December 15
Montgomery County
Deep Creek Dam -- November 17
Schuylkill County
Locust Lake -- December 15
Please check with the PFBC Southeastern Office for exact dates and possible changes--- 717-626-0228
November 06 and 07, 2010
Took the kids to the area of Pine Creek that was milky white to check if thetrout were OK. They were. Wetook aspinning rod and we were tossing a Pins Minnow. We caught a couple and lost a couple. The kids had fun and the fish appeared to bein pretty good shape.The water temp was 42 degrees.
There were a couple of kids tossing worms and they said they didn'tcatch anything.
November 02, 2010
Found some sort of Pollution event on Pine Creek yesterday. I did call the PFBC. I was told the 96 officer is on duty. Not sure if they figured it out or not. I did some scouting and figured outan area where the pollution would have originated. Hopefully the PFBC found the source. But, I'm not holding my breath. Here are two pics.
October 25, 2010
The most famous hatch of the year is occurring as we speak. The leaf hatch is on !!!
October 03, 2010
Local Class A watersare in outstanding shape.
October 01, 2010
The current flow of the Salmon River, Pulaski, New York is 8310 CFS. Use this link to the USGS gage for Pineville to get an up to date flow rate of the river:
http://waterdata.usgs.gov/ny/nwis/uv/?site_no=04250200
Streams in the Oley Valley are a mess. We needed rain badly, but this is overkill and very dangerous. Be careful if you venture outside. Most of the roads on my way home from work were under water.
September 30, 2010
Just got home from the Salmon River, Pulaski, NY. The wateris now flowing at 1800 CFS as of this morning. There isplenty of rainfall predicted for that area.Most of the fish sitting in the estuary should be entering the river as I type this. I was told by a few other anglers that DSR was HOT this past Tuesday and Wednesday. I was stuckin the fly zones for my 3.5 days I was up there.Therewere a few fish in the fly zones. Plenty to keep anyone busy. The lower fly zonewas crowded in the mornings and somewhat less crowded in the evenings. The upper fly zoneis always a pleasure to fish. Anglers tend to give you space, the scenery is beautiful and the Osprey's always put on a show. I fished the afternoon on Sunday and landed oneCoho and hooked up with several other fish. Monday was SUPER SLOW. I didhook up a few times, but lost every battle. I did manage to land one fish that turned out to be foul hooked under the pectoral fin. This fish weighed every bit of 30 pounds. Tuesday was slow in the morning--lower fly zone. I fished the upper fly zone Tuesday afternoon by myself and had agreat time. Two KingSalmon landed and a few others broke me off. Plenty ofhits. Wednesday was spent in the upper fly zone and wasslow in the morning but pretty consistent in the afternoon. I went 4/7 onWednesday with 2epic battles. The first one I lost. It was aKing that was easily over 30 pounds. Fought thisfish for about 20 minutes before I made a mistake. I tried to horse the fish out of the current and my 12 pound tippet snapped. It was totally awesome. Ialso landed a smallmouth bass, a few small brown trout, afew small rainbows (steelhead smolts ?), a fallfishand a baby AtlanticSalmon. Flies that worked the bestfor me were my mini-Death Stonefly inBlack, Black/Chartreuse, Black/Blue and I did hook the monster king with my Black and Orange mini-death stonefly. The Mohawk egg pattern accounted for many smaller fish and the salmon sized Light Spruce fly produced a few hookups. Last years
--One Day Trip-- hot fly,Olive bugger with White marabou tail and redcrystal flash also received plenty of attention and did account for 2 fish. The guyI was fishing withused plenty of flies with smaller bucktail flies doing most of the damage. He didhook-up with a few fish while usingmy Death Stonefly, landing one nice Coho.I can tell you this---the next few weeks will provide some serious action. There are fish in the system at this moment and with the water release at 1800 CFS and the rain. Most, if not all ofthe fish at the mouth of the river will enter the river. I'll post a few picsfrom the trip in the next day or so. On aside note: 2 men died while fishing Oswego River. If you plan on fishing this river, please pay attention and know your wading limits.
September 07, 2010
I escaped to Manatawny Creek for a little over an hour. I was searching for carp after getting an email from a fellow angler. Hit the creek at about 645 pm. Noticed fish working the surface. I tied on a size 18 tan CDC/Elk hair caddis. Two strikes, two holdover stocked brown trout. Water temp was 67 degrees. No pictures of the fish, just a quick release. Then, all of a sudden the sky went dark and I was under attack. Huge, enormous, monstrous bugs were all over the place. Many of them decided to whack me. Let me say, it hurt. I managed to catch one and take a picture or two before it escaped. I then decided to put on a large brown spent spinner. As I was tying the knot, I noticed a huge carp--just my luck. I caught a 2-inch fallfish on the spent spinner. The water went still. It was getting dark, so I called it a day. Check out my stories pageto see what bug was tryingto kill me.
The water on theManny is beginning to stay cool.The Manny is stilllow and very clear. The smallmouths have been active and my son landed a 17-inch smallie on a nightcrawler last week.
August 25, 2010
Decided to take the rugrats fishing today. First thing: catch our bait.We caught some grasshoppers and crickets then we went and raked up some honker nightcrawlers. Air tempoutside was 70 degrees. Creek temp was 66 degrees. Manatawny Creek is finally cooling down. Zoe caught a rockbass,brown trout and a honker 13-inch smallie. Vinny caught a rockbass, redbreast sunfish and a good number of smaller largemouth bass. Nice and cool weather made for a pleasant few hours. The pool we were fishing was loaded with suckers and chubs and I did see a few trout and a couple of nice sized smallmouth bass. I threw around a purple/silver pins minnow and had trout darting and dashing after it, but no takers. I wonder how many trout survived the boiling water this summer? We'll find out soon enough. Go fish some grasshopper patterns !!
Zoe's Smallmouth Bass---it spit out a 6-inch minnow while Zoe was reeling it in
August 23, 2010
Not much fishing going on at the moment. The weather is cooling and the bite should be picking up. My time as of late has been spent tying flies for the upcoming Salmon / Steelhead season. I love this time of the year--big fish caught on the Death Stonefly !! The fish will be running soon enough. So, dust off the vice and let the colors flow. I put a few pics of the flies I have been tying lately on the FLIES page. Any questions as to what to tie, just shoot me an email or use the Contact 2Bonthewater page. I am always happy to help.
August 16, 2010
Had some business to take care of in Kutztown today, so I took along the spinning rod. I fished below the town. The water was cold. I managed a bunch of chubs and one wild brown trout. I was fishing with a Pin's Minnow. Water was low. I took a drive to check out the water behind the Kutztown Pool. What a shame !! All that cold water coming from a quarry and the creek itself in that area is near lifeless. Nothing but shallow silty water, very cold shallow silty water.
August 13, 2010
Bridge work on Manatawny Creek, Rt. 562, is still ongoing. The bridge is now being painted a Hunter Green color.Most of the creeks in the OleyValley are really low. Even with the rain, the creeks remain very low.
I have a trip scheduled to the Salmon River planned inlate September thanks to Jack. Without Jack's kindness and awesomeness, I would not be going salmon fishing.
I have startedtyingflies for the upcoming salmon trip. Tied up a good number of Death Stoneflies, even a few new color patterns. The silver /clear Death Stonefly is flat out awesome looking.I'll post a few pics before this Sunday.
Cooler weather over the next few days should provide some really good panfishing orSmallmouth Bassfishing. If the kids and I were not sick, we'd be out thereright now.
August 07, 2010
The summer has been hot and I have been spending plenty of time with the kids and getting Zoe ready for kindergarten. Zoe competed in a National Beauty pageant and won honorable mention in the beauty competition (FYI -- Zoe wears no make-up, fake hairor fake teethand she competes in the natural division--she is my little girl and I would never DRESS HER UP like all those crazy folks you see on TV). Zoe and I did win BEST PERSONALITY during the father / daughter competition. We dressed as fishermen, answered a question about each other and then Zoe did some fly casting on stage. It was cute. Zoe was crowned Little Queen when she won the Pennsylvania state pageant back in 2006 while competing in a Sunburst pageant.
Fishing wise, I have not been out. Most of the local creeks are very low and the waters are still too warm. The Schuylkill River should be fishing nicely right about now. There are plenty of out of the way smaller streams that are teeming with Smallmouths, Carp and a variety of Panfish. Foam flies that make a nice PLOPOnTheWater will get some nice strikes. A crayfish pattern is also a killer in these waters.
Once September rolls around I will once again be OnTheWater trying to catch anything that has fins and swims.
Start tying for the fall Salmon / Steelhead season. It is right around the corner.
July 11, 2010
Took the kids for a ride as we checked water temperatures on a few local streams. There was some serious bridge work going at the Rt. 562 bridge that Manatawny Creek runs under. The smell in the air was awful and was honestly giving me a headache. Pics of bridge below.
W. Br. Perkiomen Creek -- air temp 89 degrees, checked the temperature at two spots, temps were 70 and 69 degrees -- Taken between 415-425 pm
Manatawny Creek -- air temp was 88 degrees, checked the temperature at three spots, temps were 76 degrees at Red Covered Bridge, 74 degrees above TIKI bar and 76 degrees below the Rt. 562 bridge -- taken between 455-520 pm
Little Manatawny Creek -- air temp was 89 degrees, checked the temperature at one location, temperature was 74 degrees -- taken at 525 pm
Bieber Creek -- air temp was 89 degrees, checked the temperature at one location, temperature was 70 degrees -- taken at 540 pm
Pine Creek -- air temp was 87 degrees, checked the temperature at one location, temperature was 70 degrees -- taken at 600 pm
Most of the temperatures were taken in shaded areas of the creek. Creeks are low and clear. Manatawny Creek had a good flow. Fishing down low on the Manny will get you into some nice Smallmouth Bass action.
July 9, 2010
The weather has been brutal. This heatwave has made most ofthe local trout streams too warm to fishfor the catch and release angler. Schuylkill River should be fishing fine. Maiden Creek below Ontelaunee Lake should provide anglers with some fishthat are willing to bite. If you just want to catch some fish using dry flies, try fishing Perkiomen Creek below Deep Creek Lake / Knight Lake. This area usually has all kinds of fish swimming around. You can find Carp, Smallmouth Bass, Largemouth Bassand a wide assortment of panfish to keep you busy. Take some cold water with you !!!Your best way to keep the water cool is to freeze a bottle or two of water the night before you head out. As the day heats up, the water bottles will slowly melt, leaving you with nice cold waterto drink throughout the day. Another great creek to fish this time of the year is Unami Creek. It is located near Green Lane in Montgomery County and is an approved trout water. This stream has many Smallmouth Bass andLargemouth Bass living in it. Plenty of panfish too.There are some very nice-sized Largemouth Bass in this creek. Keep your eyes open because there are somemonster carp living in Unami Creek.Unami Creek is the most scenic creek in Southeastern PA.
June 27, 2010
The hot weather has most of the trout streams in the area too hot to fish.It was 80 degrees outside yesterday and I decided to check a few temps late in the afternoon. Two Class A waters hadconsistent temperatures of 67/68 degrees in a few spots. Manatanwy Creek had water temps of 72, 70, 68. All depends on where the temperaturewas taken. One feederstreaminto Manatawny Creek had a temperature of 64 degrees. I caught afew wild browns on the Class A waters. I wasusing beetles and ants. I fished for 30-minutes on Manatawny and landed 2 wild browns on a tan caddis dry fly in the area where the water temp was 68 degrees. Also made a cast in the area where the water was 74 degrees and caught a smallmouth. Not much of anything was going on bugwise. Temperature wise, if it is 90 degrees outside, pretty sure most, if not all of the local trout waters will be at 70 degrees or higher. Of course there are certain areas where temperatures will not be that high. Takea thermometer with you and check thetemps. We don't wantto kill the trout.The trout that survive through the summer will offerus great fishing in the fall. Not forgetting to mention how colorful they will be. I have not made a trip to the Schuylkill River as of yet, but I'd bet the house that the smallie action should be pretty darn good. Hit the riffles and runs. The Schuylkill River is a great place to take your canoe or kayak. Check the flows before you head out and know your limits. The flows on the SchuylkillRiver are currently:Reading-- 525 CFS,
Pottstown-- 705,Norristown-- 809.If you want to take a nice scenic canoeor kayak ride, putinat Maiden Creek--below Ontelaunee Lake and below Blue FallsDam and take out at the PFBC Epler Boat Ramp. You'll need a launch permit or boat registration to use the PFBC facility. You can also takeyour watercraft outbefore Epler atCross Keys Road or at Muhlenburg Township park which is below the PFBC Epler Access. Another good float is from Pottstown to the Trinley PFBC access area. Vincent Dam has been removed and it is now a straight shot to the access area.
June 20, 2010
Took a ride to Trout Run Reservoir. This is the fullest I have ever seen this body of water. There is little room to fish, unless you don't mind walking the shoreline that is covered with all types of vegetation, including Poison Ivy. Pleny of fish to be caught in this body of water, that is if you can get to them.
Manatawny Creek fished OK. I got out a few nights and the bite has slowed. Water is warming, but you can find certain areas of the stream that have nice cool water. Terrestrial time, so get out the crickets, grasshoppers and ants. Of course, don't forget your beetle and green weenie patterns.
June 14, 2010
The kids wanted to go catfishing, so we went to collect some Flathead bait. We took a drive to a lake that has some gills and pumpkinseeds. Low and behold, the kids were into some of the biggest panfish I have ever seen. We ended up staying until dark. The kids were fly fishing and casting on their own. SCARY. They did great casting the poppers--Lil' Vinny will one day be a monster with a switch rod in his hands.After the first few fish, my job was removing the honker panfish from the hook.So, go find a pond and get your kids out fishing. Doesn't matter if the fish are dinks or monsters-- Just get your kids fishing. Get them hooked on fishing now !!
June 13, 2010
Fished Antietam Creek late afternoon. Storm rolled through and poured buckets for a few minutes. Hot and muggy with no bugactivity, other than those trying to bite me. Picked up a few rainbows on nymphs. Antietam is getting low but the water was cold. Stopped at Manatawny Creek on the way home just in time for the skies to open up again.
June 12, 2010
What a crowded day. Fished Maiden Creek below Ontelaunee Lake. People everywhere. They were swimming (which isn't allowed) and fishing.Even when I managed to get a piece of water to myself, someone found it necessaryto fish off my shoulders.I managed plenty of panfish and one verysmall bass. I caught fish oneafter the other with a big bushy dry fly. Rock Bass, Bluegills,Pumpkinseeds and Fallfish were all caught on the top. The lone Smallmouth Bass. I caught took a crayfish looking pattern. This stretch used to provide some very nice smallmouth action, but the last few trips here have been poor. Maybe live baits would be the ticket here. Going to give that a go next time I fish this water.
June 11, 2010
Fished the Manatawny Creek this evening from 7pm to 10pm. The last fish I landed was at 955pm. A tan caddis emerger was thehot ticket today. Nothing working the surface until after it was dark. Switched to a spent spinner pattern and hooked up twice--snapped one off and landed a nice stocker brown. Fish are in great shape and the water is still on the cold side.
June 10, 2010
Took a ride pastManatawny Creek tonight at about 845pm. The water is up from recent rains inthe valley, but the stream was clear and in perfect condition. A few fish were rising. Carp and Cat fishing should be pretty goodin most waters. The Schuylkill River and a few tribs shouldprovide any cat or carp angler with a few bites each nite. Channel catfish prefer dead baits andsmaller live bait, while the Flatheads prefer larger live bait. Carp will eatsmaller live bait including minnows andcrayfish along with the standard fare of homemade MUSH bait or whole kernel corn.The bottom line is--It doesn't really matter what bait you areusing. Just make sure you get out there and try to catch some of these awesome fighting fish.
June 03, 2010
Storm was on the horizon and I wasOnTheWater at about 730pm. No bugs, no rising fishing, nothing going on. Then, at about 830 the fish started to go nuts. They were chasing emergers. Switched over to a Loop-Wing Sulphur emerger and that got their attention. But, by now it was pitch black and it was raining pretty good and thelightning made it look like the 4th of July came early.I managed to land 2 fish on my emerger pattern androll 2 other trout. The weather was getting nasty and I made a dash to the truck. It was 9pm when I reached the truck.
June 02, 2010
Fished Maiden Creekin Greenwich Twp. today. Started out at the mouth of Sacony Creek but there was some serious bridge work going on, so I left after a few casts. Mynext stop was upstream a little bit. Caught some nice bluegills, onebrown trout, pumpkinseeds, green sunfish, agolden shiner and I almost hooked into a very nice largemouth bass. The largemouth bass sniffed my wooly bugger, but decided not to eat it. It was a nice few hours.
May 30, 2010
Took the kids to Manatawny Creek for the sulphur hatch. The creek was up from the rainlast night. Kids and water mean plenty of noise,lots of splashing and lots offun.Normally, 750pm is about the timethe sulphurs start popping off. Not tonight,not until about 845pm. We were at the creek at 715pm and the kids were in the water by 745pm. This gave the kids plenty of time to run aroundand then splash around. There were a few risers andZoe hooked one fish. Vinny was in charge of wrestling the fish into submission. The fish barely made it out alive.
May 29, 2010
So glad to get back OnTheWater. I fished the lower section of Manatawny Creek. The water was warm and I'm pretty sure I am the fallfish king. I saw some Iso's and huge stoneflies coming off and flying around.I caught a trophy Bluegill, no kidding check out the picture, almost 9 inches. The Bluegill took a BH BeadtailStonefly Nymph. I made my way upstream and hit a nice stretch of water at about 8pm. A few fish were working the surfaceand I immediately snapped off a fly on a nice fish. Way too excited. I was dry fly fishing with favorite fly fishing rod. A St. Croix Imperial 9 foot 5/6 weight. I bought this rod while I was in college and I just got it back from St. Croix after a minor repair. In any event, all of a sudden every fish seemed to be surfacing. So, what's a guy to do? You start picking them off one by one. I was using a freshly tied CDC sulphur pattern tied on a size 16 scud hook. It was crazy. It was awesome to watch the fish rise off the bottom, chase the fly downstream, circle around it and smash it.
May 17, 2010
My shoulders are really hurting and I am not sure when I will be OnTheWater again.
Escaped tonight for 2.5 hours and the fishing was fantastic. Close to one of the best dry fly evenings I've ever had. Sulphurspopping off, caddis skittering about and cahill spinners.An orange biot Sulphur CDC dry fly was hot at first and then I switched to a spent sulphur spinner.
As it got dark, I switched to a white spinner and had a blast watching for little sips near my fly. The last fish I caught was at 857 pm. The wife is working 3rd shift,otherwise, I'd still be out there.
May 15, 2010
Fished a nice stretch of water this evening. Useda nymphwith a sulphur emerger dropped off it most of the evening. It was fun swinging them and bouncing them up off the bottom. Not much surface activity going on. Sulphurs popping off in small numbers when I got there. Then at about 750 pm, I walked into a blizzard of sulphurs. Egg-laying spinners everywhere. It was awesome. I left my headlamp in the truck so I had to walkout before it got too dark and miss the potential spinner fall. I then drove to another stretch of the crick and hooked up a few times fishing a brown spent spinner. I hada few misses and 3 solid hookups. I lost them at the bank.
Fish the mornings with a brown or white spent spinner and you might get a few takes on the surface. My bet would be on a BH nymph with a sulphur emerger dropped off it. Pheasant Tails have been working good also. BH Hares Ear nymphs in a sulphur color have also been taking a few fish. Don't leave the house without a few midges. My favorite is a "John's Spring Creek Pupa" tied in size 18 and 20 (Trout Flies of The East--page 93). Drop the midge off the nymph. You will be surprised at how many fish take the midge. I'll post a pic ofmy sulphur emerger later in the week.
May 14, 2010
Happy Birthday Dad
Fished Manatawny Creek for 1.5 hours in the afternoon. Sulphurs and Cahills coming off. A few risers. I fishednymphs and emergers andcaught a 16 inch rainbow trout ona BHPT. I found a Golden Rainbow Trout andspent about 45 minutes trying to catchhim. The only thing he chasedwas a Sucker Spawn pattern in pink and peach. As I was leaving I tied ona CDC sulphur dry fly and picked up a 7 inch wild brown trout.
May 12, 2010
Took a little ride this evening to fish a stream that I was hoping to have all to myself. I did, not another person in sight. Saw a few sulphurs but not a rise was noticed. I caught two brookies on a CDC sulphur dry fly and the rest of the fish were caught with nymphs. Mostly a BHHE, PT or a beadtail caddis. I was fishing with my 6 foot 2 wt bamboo rod and my Vernley Trout reel. What an awesome combo. As it was getting dark, my nymph rig slightly paused. I raised the rod and felt some weight, but it wasn't moving. I pulled and pulled and finally the fish started to move. I think the fish didn't even realize it was hooked. Istripped in some line and the fish started to shake his head. I was glad, because for a moment I thought the fish might have been foul-hooked. He wasn't, and after the head shaking, he went nuts. What an epic battle. What an amazing fish, especially on a 2 wt bamboo fly rod with a fly reel that is dated to the 1930's or 1940's. The fish was beautiful in every way. Huge pectoral fins and a nice blue patch on his cheek near his eye. What a specimen.He looked like a submarine swimming in the water !!My first impression of the leviathan is that it was a wild fish. But I still sent a few emails and the concensus is that it is a wild trout. Tonights fishing provided a mixed bag of fish, a few smallwild brown trout, along with a few stocker browns, stockerrainbows and the brook trout. What agreat evening. I topped it all off with a visit to Ted's house to show off the bamboo fly rod and talk shop. Teddy is the coolest dude in the world.
May 11, 2010
Took the kids carpin' today at Carsonia Lake. We were there the other day and found a bunch of carp in spawn mode. We had one carp take our bait and Zoe put the screws to him. Zoe whipped his butt. It wasabout a 7 pound fish. We alsohooked a duck, butwe'll save that story for another day. I fished Manatawny Creek from about 715 to 830 and landed 2 fish. One tooka sulphur CDC dry fly and the other took a sulphur emerger. It was about 40 degrees and raining.I didroll a larger fish on a midge, but aside from that, it was a very slow night. What a tough evening.
Zoe's Carp -- They rode their scooters and came running when a fish hit.
May 10, 2010
Happy Birthday Mike
Landed a few fish but there was absolutely no bug activity to speak of. All fish were caught subsurface on some form of an emerger or wet fly.
May 09, 2010
Happy Mothers Day
-- fishing report for this evening under photograph --
Iwasjust sitting herethinking how fishing so far this year has been outstanding. Plenty of hours spent catching fish and enjoying all the great outdoors has to offer.I am certain that it is only going toget better.Almost time to start chasing panfish, smallies and carp.Nightime fishing for catfish isgoing to be so much fun. Can't wait.
The best thing so far this year is that Ihave been tying up some new patterns. I purchased a few books on tying with CDC and watched a video or two. Tying dry flies has never been so easy.
They're Here
Fished this evening from 645 to 745, no bug activity to speak of.Thefish were hammeringmy newly tiedsulpher emerger pattern.Five of the fish were wild browns and one was a rainbow -- the other was a very colorful shiner.
I was hitting riffles, little pools and pockets with the nymph / emerger pattern. Cast down and across and hop the flies upoff the bottom with quick upward lifts of the fly rod.The fish would really strike hard. I love fishing emergers.
May 08, 2010
Fished a local class A wild trout stream.Nothing working the surface. Fished a nymph with a midge dropped off it. Most fish were taking the midge. Fished Manatawny Creek for 1/2 an hour in the evening. Managed 3 fish on sulphur emerger pattern and missed a few more. I thought I was off to see the wizard. The wind was insane and branches were falling into the stream. I left when I heard a huge tree CRACK. It fell a little bit, but got caught on other trees. What a windy day. The power was out at my house from 1130 am until about 750 pm.
Sulphurs, Sulphurs, Sulphers..............
May 07, 2010
Hit the SE PA bug factory again -- Manatawny Creek -- and had a nice evening.Plenty of bugs in the air, ISOs, cahills,sulphurs, hendricksons, midges and caddis were all out and about. The first section of water I fishedprovided some good subsurface midge action. I used a BHHE and dropped a midge off it. Most fish were taking the midge. As the evening wore on I started to see a few risers here and there. I switched to the yellow/ orange wet flythat I used the day before and the fish were hammering it. I tied on a sulpher dry fly as it got darkand I missed 2 and landed one. I decided to moveandgoto anothersection of the creek. By now it was about 9pm and pitch black. I saw a few risers and made a cast. SLURP !! I caught a brown trout on a sulpher dry in complete darkness. Awesome.All fish, with exceptionto my last fish -- were all rainbow trout. I still have not figured out whyone day I will catch all browns, one day I will catch all rainbows and some days, you will catch a little of everything. Can't figure out a pattern.
---ID the bugs correctly and I will mail you a 2Bonthewater magnet or postcard ----
May 06, 2010
Fished Manatawny Creek for about 2 hours. Landed a few fish on wet flies and beadhead hares ear in a sulphur color. There were a few sulphurs in the air tonight. Didn't see a rise in the section I was fishing.
Fly of the Day
May 05, 2010
UPDATE: took a ride to Manatawny Creek -- it is in perfect condition
Local creeks are in great shape after all the rain we have received.Let's hope the rain holds off for a few days.
Antietam Creek and Antietam Lake were stocked yesterday.
May 04, 2010
Smallerlocal wild trout watershave a good flow but have cleared up.At the moment they are fishable. I have not checked out Manatawny Creek, but if we don't get anymore significant rain, it should fish well tomorrow with streamers or nymphs. At this moment, storm clouds are overheadand rain is coming down.
Start tying up some sulphur emergers.
May 03, 2010
Oley Valley streams are over the banks. Stream fishing for this week might be a total wash. Still drizzling and more rain has been forecasted for later in the week.
May 01, 2010
Manatawny Creek was stocked yesterday, April 30, 2010. I was told that 15 stops were done with each stop getting 6 buckets. That translates into about 150 fish per stop. I took Zoe out this morning and the creek was full of folks. Zoe and I hit the water at about 630 am and were back at home by 8am. Plenty of folks out. Zoe caught two rainbow trout on Berkley Power Corn.
April 24, 2010
Fished the West Branch of Perkiomen creek in the afternoon. I started out with a tan caddis dry fly with no takes. Switched to a black caddis pattern since I noticed some small black stoneflies around. Nothing doing. Put on a Red Quill and the fish went nuts. It was a very productive couple of hours. I fished Manatawny Creek in the evening and the action was slow. People were fishing all over the creek. Didn't notice many risers and I only had one swipe at a CDC Red Quill dry fly. I did land two small wild brown trout on BHHE nymph and a caddis emerger. I also landed a golden shiner and a rock bass. Rain duringthe last two nights will have most of the local creeks running high and off color. Check below the picture for stocking updates.
STOCKING UPDATE
This past week Antietam Creek and Lake were stocked along with Willow Creek. Willow Creek was stocked with brook trout but only received 300 fish. Unami Creek, Montgomery County was also stocked.
April 27 -- Mill Creek and Sacony Creek
April 29 -- Tulpehocken Creek, upper and lower sections
April 30 -- Manatawny Creek
Manatawny Creek 4-20-2010
Spent about 2.5 hours on the creek tonight, started off with nymphs and did pretty good. I had most fish taking either a sulphur colored hares ear or a midge that was dropped off the HE. I mostly caughtrainbows tonight, with a few stocked browns and a few wild browns.Bugs noticed tonight were: crane fly, black caddis, tan caddis and hendricksons.
Cherry Run 4-17-2010
I spent the night before the opening day of trout season at a friends cabin. Ron certainly doesknow how toentertain his guests !!! After about 2 hours of sleep I made my way to Cherry Run. This stream empties into Penns Creek and is a catch and release stream. I figured with it being opening day of trout season, that I would have the creek all to myself. I didn't see another angler during the 6 hours I fished this gem of a trout stream. I had fun fishing the 6 foot 2 weight bamboo fly rod with the old school Vernley trout reel on it. The fish were active and I caught plenty of wild brook trout and a few wild brown trout while creeping along the banks of the stream. I took some video too. I will post that in a few days. I was fishing with CDC Caddis dry flies. I took a fish on a green drake dry and I also tagged a few with an olive wooly bugger. It was quiet and peaceful. I fished Penns Creek for about 45 minutes after fishing Cherry Run. Penns was up from the day prior and the air temperature was about 45 degrees. There were anglers everywhere in the special regs area.I was going to camp overnight inthe state forest and fishPenns in the morning, but I was tired and my shoulders were killing me so I decided to head home and end the trip a day early. I am pretty certain that if you fished big bushy dries on Cherry Run you couldcatch fish all day. Beautiful fish. Icaught fish that ranged from 3 inches to about 8 inches. What a very relaxing day.
Penns Creek 4-16-2010
Ihad some family business to take care of near Penns Creek, so after business was done-- I madea run to Penns Creek.I followed Weikert Rd. towhere it ends, at aPFBC parking lot. I got dressed and fished the water directly below the parking lot. It was getting late and darkness was approaching, so I fished the closest water.There were a few risersand Iwas quick to a take on CDC Hendrickson dry fly.I had the fish on for about a minute and then he came off. I missed a fewmore on the CDC Hendrickson. The Grannom Caddis fliesformed a cloud over Penns Creek. Not many on the water though. I switched to a CDC Grannom Caddis dry and missed one, missed another. I waded out a little bit further into the creek and spotted a nice rise. I made a few casts, nothing. I watched the creek for a minute or two, then cast again. B L U U P -- A fish hammered my fly. Good hook set on this one. I started to make my way to the bank because the fishfelt heavy and it wasreally getting dark. It took about 15 minutes to land the fish.The fishsurely put up a good fight but my Fly Logic outfit perfomed flawlessly. My net was full, rim to rim with a Penns Creek Brown Trout. After a few pics, the fish was released.This was my first time on Penns Creek in about 8 years -- welcome back.
Manatawny Creek 4-14-10
I'm getting spoiled. Caddis early and Hendricksons as night was approaching. Even saw a few Craneflies in the air. The fishput on the feedbagwhen the Hendricksons were OnTheWater. There were a few folks nearby bait fishing and they were catching fish all evening long. As it got pitch black outside I needed to make one more cast and I'm glad I did !! I cast a CDC Hendrickson dry fly in the dark and I was rewarded with a beautiful take by a very nice fish. What a great evening. The fish was 15 inches long and very chunky. Awesome.
Can you find the fish I released? I will put a pic of the fish in the photographs 2010 page.
Manatawy Creek 4-13-10
Cold, Cold, Cold and I was not dressed for it. Fished from 6pm to 8pm with dry flies and a 6 foot, 2 weight bamboo fly rod that had a Vernley Trout reel attached to it-- really old school. I was tossing a Hendrickson CDC dry fly with a CDC BWO dropped off it. I fished two areas and both produced. I started fishing the second area at about 7pm and it was on fire. The fishwere working the surface and they started to concentrate on my size 20 BWO.The temperature when I started fishing was 49 degrees and it was 45 degrees when I got back to my truck. It was a wonderful evening. All the fish I caught tonight were brown trout and a 1/4 of them werewild fish. Creek water was supercold and my feet have finally quit tingling.
Manatawny Creek 4-11-10
Lots of bugs in the air from about 1pmto sunset. Blue-Winged Olives, small tan Caddis and Hendricksons are what you will find OnTheWater. The trout are working the bugs on the surface and chasing emergers.
Just a cool photograph
These fish are from a Class A wild trout stream. Looks like a hatchery photo !! But it is not !! These fish were found during a very HOT summer day. I would guess they were allresting over a spring. This was the largest concentration of wild brown trout I have ever seen in one spot. There was a
5 foot by 5 foot area that was nothing but fish. It was neat to see.
April 08, 2010
Here is my report: Zoe caught her first trout on a fly rod. I aided in casting, but she held the fly rod with the proper grip and helped cast. Once the fly was on the water I let go and let her do her thing. I even let her cast by herself......I mean flog the water!!! She missed about 4 fish-- she hooked one on a nymph but she had no idea how to strip in the line, so off he came. I kept changing out flies. We finally just stuck with various dry flies. She got a few hits when the fly was swinging. That is how she caught her first fish with a fly. It was at the end of the drift and the caddis started to swing and there was a tiny tap. I lifted the rod and told her to reel. I thought the monster got off !!!It didn't !!!
April 07, 2010
Got OnTheWater at about 630 pm. FIshed a nymph with an emerger dropped off it. Caught a few fish this way, then I noticed a RISE. Switched to a CDC Red Hendrickson dry fly and it was game on. I was back at the truck a little before 8pm. What a great evening to be on Manatawny Creek. The stretch of water I wanted to fishfirst had many anglers already fishing. I must have seen about 6 cars in a small area. I decided to move on, there is plenty of fishable water on the Manny. Biggest fish was a nice brown trout that went about 14 inches. He really put up a fight.
April 06, 2010
Fished with the kids in the afternoon on Manatawny Creek. Fishing was slow. We found one golden rainbow trout who sniffed our powerbait, but wouldn't bite. I managed tohook two fish on maggots that were dropped about 8 feet below a float. The trout were chasing emergers most of the afternoon. The water wasn't boiling, but the fish were pretty aggressive.
April 04, 2010
Opening day was a wash. The wife got sick and we didn't take the kids to the lake. We did manage to load the canoe on the truck and I spent most of the night packing the gear. I did take Little Vinny down to Pine Creek and he caught one wild brown by himself and I hooked 3 others that I let him reel in.
Easter Sunday I found myself on Manatawny Creek for about 3 hours. I caught 2 fish. One rainbow on a white estaz bugger and one Golden Rainbow Trout that took a BH Beadtail stonefly nymph that was dropped off of a thingamabobber. I found another golden, but he wouldn't take anything. I missed 3 fish on a Caddis dry fly. I checked the hook after the 3rd miss and noticed the hook was broken. There were a few risers here and there. The weather over the past two days has been outstanding.
March 23, 2010
Found myself in the Harrisburg area and I could not pass upa chance to fish the Letort for a few hours,especially when it was cloudy. I fished for about 2-hours behind the memorials for Fox and Marinaro. I had a few fish inspect and refuse mysize 20 BWO dry fly. I dropped a midge off my dry fly and had a fish follow it-- but drag got the better of that situation. One fish decided to make my day and slurp in my dry fly. What a great take. Nothing better than fishing withmy new bamboo fly rod and catching awild brown trout in the heart of Pennsylvania Spring Creek fishing.I made a dash to the area near the quarry and made a fewcasts. The quarry area was a recon mission. BWO's were coming off sporadically and a few fish were rising to them. If you sat still and just watched the creek, you could see browns and suckers working the bottom of thecreek and chasing emergers.
March 18, 2010
Couldn't wait for the wife to get home fromwork. I had all intentions offishing with my new bamboo fly rod. A 6 foot 2 piece one tip 2/3 wt. It is beautiful. I have to thank Mr. Fish of Michigan for allowing me to purchase this sweet piece of bamboo from him. I put a Revelation Spyder 3/4 reel on it. This reel does not make the grade. It is basically a center pin reel and is in a state of constant free spool. I spent more time dealing with line issues today than enjoying my time OnTheWater.I sent Mr. Fish an emailandhe might have a reel or two that will match the bamboo. I hope so.
So, I take a little ride and fish a Class A wild trout stream. I tie on a Mr. Rapidan dry fly that was given to me froma gentleman named Kenny. Kenny lives in Virginia and spends most of his time chasing wild brook trout. Ifigured what fly would be more fitting than a Mr. Rapidan to break in my first bamboo fly rod. Well, the water is still very cold and is up a bit. So after a few casts, I switched to a size 8 woolhead sculpin pattern. Good Choice. I picked up two nice wild brown trout. One was 12 inches and the other was over 13 inches. I took the wronglens with my camera.But I got a few pics that turned out OK. This is the smaller of the two I caught this evening.
March 14, 2010
Fished Tulpehocken Creek for 4 hours today. Started at the base of the dam and walked and walked and walked downstream. I was on a carp catching mission. I hooked two carp and lost them both. I did catch 3 trout and rolled about 6 more on subsurface midges. Plenty of midges in the air. I only saw a handful of fish rising. The dam is being repaired and the creek had almost no flow, 40 CFS and was ankle deep. Downstream of where Plum Creek enters the Tullylooked likechocolate milk.
March 10, 2010
All approved trout waters are closed and the state is now out and about stocking those streams with trout. Southeastern PA trout waters open on April 3rd and the rest of the state opens on April 17th. That does not mean you cannot go trout fishing !!! There are plenty of Special Regulation streams that are open to trout fishing and most of those have been stocked with troutduring the past few weeks. Those streams would be: Little Schuylkill River, Bear Creek, Tulpehocken Creek, French Creek and Little Lehigh Creek. These streams are either Fly Fishing Only Catch and Release, Approved Trout Waters Open to Year Round Fishing or Delayed Harvest Artificial Lures only. If you have any questions--because I know it can be very confusing-- just send me an email. You can also fish Class A wild trout waters during this closed period. All these streams--Delayed Harvest Artificial Lures Only, Fly Fishing Catch and Release, Approved Trout Waters Open to Year Round Fishing and Class A wild trout streams are open to fishing but you are not allowed to creel the fish, keep the fish or take the fish during this closed season. All the fish must be returned to the waters from which they came, unharmed of course. Each category has different rules and regulations. Did I Lose You Yet? Again, If youhaveany questionsplease go to the contact 2Bonthewater page and send them to me.
Iwas able to fish a Class A wild trout stream yesterday for about an hour and a half. I managed to pick up two wild brown trout. I was alsopleased to hear American Woodcocks PEENTing while I was OnTheWater. They are a true signthat Spring is right around the corner.
February 24, 2010
Last ice fishing trip of the year was spent with the kidsat Ontelaunee Lake. It was raining non-stop and thanks to the Eskimo QuickFish 3, we all stayed pretty dry despite the constant downpour.
Little Vinny caught a White Perch and a Golden Shiner. Zoe and Vinny both caught plenty of Bluegills, Pumpkinseeds and small Crappies. The kids even let me catch a few fish !!!
February 20, 2010
Fished Deep Creek Lake from 3pm to 6pm. There were a few ice fisherman out and about. One group was running tip-ups and they managed a few bass and a nice crappie. Another angler landed a trout on powerbait. I spoke with plenty of guys and kids and they were all having fun. Everyone was curious about the Showdown Digital Fish Finder and they were all laughing when a fish was marked and caught. Fishing was slow and I hole hopped all over the lake near the dam. Deepest water I found was 13 feet, but most of the holes were from 7-10 feet deep. I managed plenty of smaller Bluegills and Crappies. The crappies were hitor miss. If your hole had them, you caught a few of them--bang, bang, bang -- one after the other. Ice thickness was 7-inches with 2-inches of crud ice on top of that. I spoke with a Park Ranger for a good bit of time and he said the parkwasn't sure about ice fishing happening tomorrow. He said he went through the ice in front of the Ranger Station. It was only a foot deep, but he went through. It was slushy near the shoreline.
February 14, 2010
Fished Ontelaunee Lake alongside Rt. 73. The lake had about 6-inches of clear ice, then 2-3 inches of frozen slush ice, then 2-3 inches of slush on top. Most, if not all of the snow has been blown off the ice by the wind. The morning bite was strong and it tapered off at lunch time. Then picked up again early afternoon and the lake turned into the dead sea about 430 pm. Most of the fish were small, with the biggest fish being a 12.5 inch Largemouth Bass. Most of the Crappie were small with a few 8-inchers and the Bluegills and Pumpkinseeds were small with a few 7-inchers caught. Also managed one Yellow Perch, one White Perch and a couple more Largemouth Bass. As the day wore on, the fish got smaller and smaller and smaller (great Faith No More song). The action was pretty good, so I won't complain one bit. Like I always say, -- If it has fins and swims, I am happy to catch it. The ShowDown digital fish finder was a bit squirrly today, but I am guessing it is because the area I fished is cluttered with all types of debris. I have sent the ShowDown folks an email and I am awaiting their reply. Spoke with a few other anglers who stated Peters Creek cove area fished OK in the morning but was slow most of the day. I was also told that the ice near the sunken bridge was about 2-inches. So, If I were you guys, I would stay away from that area of the lake.
See You Later
February 5, 2010
Fished Antietam Laketoday from 1 pm to 615 pm. The bite was super slow. Managed a few Yellow Perch andtwo Bluegill. Tried everything and then some. Fish were showing up on the SHOWDOWN, but they were mostly sniffers. Can't wait to get backOnTheHardWater afterour snowstorm.
January 18, 2010
Antietam lake fished well early morning with crappie,gills and perch being caught. The bite was steady.Some of the gills went 8 inches,the crappie were 9inches and one perch was 9 inches. I took the kids outfrom 1130 - 245 pm. The bite slowed down at about 1pm. The kids caught some gills, perch and Zoelanded one trout. The ice was 6-inches thick but the ice around the edges was getting thin. I won't be out again until we get another cold snap. It was an awesome day to beOnTheHardWater.
January 13, 2010
Spent the late afternoon and evening fishing Deep Creek Lake. Ice thickness was 5 inches. There were about a dozen folks on the ice when I got there, but they all left rather quickly. I had steady action the entire time I was there. The depth of water I was fishing ranged from 7 feet to 11 feet. The SHOWDOWN digital fish finder helped me catch a few suspended fish. I can't say enough good things about the Showdown. As darkness set in, I started to catch more and more Crappie. I caught Bluegills and Crappies in total darkness. The only light on the ice was the nice glow of the SHOWDOWN. The fish were not that big, although the trout was nice sized. The fish seemed to want smaller baits, so I used a 3mm Fiskas tungsten jig tipped with one spike. I started to hammer the Crappies with a small jigging spoon once it got dark. Even caught a few Bluegills on the spoon.
January 11, 2010
Took the kids to Whites Mill pond, Salford Township, Montgomery County to do a little ice fishing. We used the Eskimo Quickfish 3 for the first time and the kids loved it. It really blocked the wind and extended our fishing day. The kids caught a few bluegills and ate their lunch before they got cold and we had to leave. We found a honey hole right before the kids got cold. The Showdown was marking fish all over the bottom. The Showdown digital fish finder is proving to be a solid investment. Whites Mill pond is a very small body of water that has Largemouth Bass, Crappie, Bluegills, Chain Pickerel and Golden Shiners swimming in its waters. Max depth is around 7 feet.
We ended the day at Unami Creek playground
January 3, 2010
Decided to fish Antietam Lake today. The wife questioned me as I was dressing for my outdoor adventure about the possession of my fishing license. Oh Boy. Simple fix, PFBC website--pay for my license and I will be ready to rock. Well, not so fast. Could not find clean printer paper. Oh well, my license is one of a kind, it has green crayon on it.
So, get to the lake and the wind is ripping. A few anglers were already on the ice. I drilled a few holes and I was in business. TheSHOWDOWNdigital fish finder is a wonderful thing. I managed a few yellow perch, a bluegill and a crappie. It was fun, but the weather was BRUTAL.
The ice thickness was about 4 inches.
I caught most of my fish with a small 3mm Fiskas blue colored tungsten jig tipped with a micro nuggie or a micro noodle.
December 23, 2009
Went ice fishing today at Antietam Lake. The ice had a thickness of 2.5-inches. I fished a few holes and managed to ice a few yellow perch and one largemouth bass. It was the first day using my new SHOWDOWN digital fish finder. It ruled. Be careful during the early ice season. One guy fell through the ice today at Antietam Lake. He is lucky to be alive. If you are not certain about the ice, stay off of it. Two guys came on the ice today in a really bad spot. The ice they were walking on was definately not safe, proven by one of the guys falling in. I told the guys, it was only about 2-inches thick and to be careful. Moments later the one guy was in the icy water. I put my gear down and made a safe dash toward the individual. I stopped dead in my tracks when I hit the poor ice. Rule number one: never create a second victim.I gave verbal directions to the guy in the water and he was able tocrawl safely to the shoreline with the assistance of his friend. If you are not sure of your abilities, please do not go onto the ice. No fish is worth dying over. Check out the PFBC website for a pamplet entitled: Is the ice safe?
November 14, 2009
With everyone in the house being sick over the past few weeks, there has been no time spent ONTHEWATER. I have taken a job as a park ranger in Montgomery County and I am relieved to have found a job that lets me work in the outdoors!!! Thepark is right on Perkiomen Creek where it enters the Schuylkill River and I should be able to get a few hours of fishing in before or after a shift come the spring and then intothe summer months.
Deep Creek Lake in Montgomery County is scheduled to be stocked with Trout on November 17th. It will provide some nice fishing until the lake freezes over. If you would like to catch a Tiger Muskie, throw some big stickbaits or jerkbaits in the area where the fish are planted. There are not many Tiger Muskies in the lake, but there are a few and when the trout are stocked--it is just an easy meal. You can speculate every which way as to how the Tiger Muskiesgot into thelake.Perkiomen Creekflows below Deep Creek Lake and it is stocked with fingerling Tiger Muskies.
Antietam Lake in Berks Countyis scheduled to be stocked on November 17th also. This lake receives plenty of trout throughout the year.The lake also hasa few nice Largemouth Bassswimming in it. Toss some large spinnerbaits or nice sized jerkbaits to target theBassbefore the ice shows up. Icefishing season on Antietam Lake is usuallyspectacular. There are all types of fish to catch: Yellow Perch, Crappies, Bluegill, Trout, and Largemouth Bass. There are also a fewSmallmouth Bass and Carp in Antietam Lake. Most of the panfish run on the smaller side, but every now and then you can catch a nice one.Anglers who ice fish Antietam Lake areprimarilyfishing forthe Trout.
Locust Lake in Schuylkill Countyis scheduled to be stocked with TroutonDecember 16th. This lake generally has plenty of Troutswimming in it.Once thelake has safe ice, it will be game on. You can fish this lake almostanytime of the year and catch fish.
Ice fishing will be here sooner than we all think. The temps have been on thewarm side and theice fishingseason in SEPennsylvania might be a short one. So, get your gear organized andready to go. That way no time is wasted whenthe good ice makes anappearance.
October 29, 2009
The kids were begging to go fishing today. We went down the driveway and gathered a few worms and hit the creek. They caught a bunch ofWild Brown Trout. Zoe landed one that was 12 inches and Vinny landed one that was 14 inches.I put a few pics in the Photographs page 2 section.
October 21, 2009
Made the journey to the Salmon River in New York. Thanks to the shoulder really hurting, I made it a one-day trip. I fished the Upper Fly Zone and the Lower Fly Zone. I made an attempt to fish below the LFZ, but there were way too many people and drift boats. While at the UFZ, I landed one small brown trout on a sucker spawn pattern and I lost a nice fish thanks to a hook straightening out. I was trying to swing the fish from heavy current into some softer water near the shoreline and the fish just came off. I made my way to the LFZ and hooked up a few times withone kingbeing landed on a Death Stonefly. There were a few guys fishing--well snagging, in the side channel that was loaded with King Salmon. After they left I decided to give it a go. I wanted a few pics and certainly wanted to give the underwater video camera a good workout. One hooked here and one hooked there, nothing special. Then I switched to a moe-egghead ESL pattern. White marabou tail, olive body with olive-barred hackle. The fish were just inhaling the fly. It was funny and crazy. I switched to another fly--nothing. Back to ESL and they were all over the fly. I also tied on a CRUSH streamer in Emerald Shiner color and they were all over that also. So, a tough day turned into a fun day thanks to the final 2 hours. I saw a handful of small browns landed and one steelhead landed all day. A few other fellas were hooking up, but the day was SLOW for everyone fishing near me.
October 01, 2009
Manatawny Creek wasstocked today. I took the kids to help stock and then hopefully catch some fish. The fishstocked were very nice sized Rainbow Trout. Most of the fish appeared to be in the 11-13 inch range and looked fat and healthy. The kids caught 2 each and we called it a day. I didn't ask the numbers, but the stock point we were at received about 5 buckets, so roughly 125 fish. The lower section ofthe creek was stocked-- from Manatawny Creek Winery to confluence with Ironstone Creek.
Sept 23, 2009 SALMON RIVER REPORT
Thanks to JACK for keeping us updated!!!!!
***** I was told by Jack that there were plenty of fish in the Little Black Hole, but it was a zoo.He then returned to the LFZ and had a good stretch of water to himself. Hooked all kinds of fish with the bulk being Cohos. He said they were hammering a size 8 Royal Coachmen streamer.
A friend of mine is upfishing the Salmon River at this very moment. Jack has been up there since Sunday. So far, he has done well. I was told Sunday the Upper Fly Zone and the Lower Fly Zone had people lined up, so he went and fished below the bridge that marks the lower boundary of the LFZ.He was all by himself and a few Cohos pushed through. He managed to hook a couple of them, landing one. Monday he hit theLFZ and hooked into plenty of brown trout, one was estimated to be 12-14 pounds and that fish escaped with some last minute heroics. He did land one nice steelhead and hooked a King Salmon or two. Tuesday he figuredthat theDSR would be the place to be. That wasn't the case,DSR wasa bust. Tuesday afternoon he fished the LFZ with great success. Hemanaged to land a few species of fish: King Salmon, Coho Salmon, Brown Trout and Steelhead. What aLUCKY GUY !!!! He was using Estaz eggs, Copper Johns and Egg-Sucking Leeches.
****Just got an email from Jack that stated the LFZ was slow this morning, but there was a BIG push of fish through DSR. I'll have more to report from Jack later on tonight. I'm sure he will be tired and sore from all the fish he is about tangle with.
Sept 20, 2009
FishedManatawny Creekagain with good results. Headed out late afternoon and there were no takers on top. I rolled two trouties while fishing amidge.I decided to move to a different area and fish waterdownstream from feeding fish. I know, who does that? Well....no strikes. So, I moved back up to the pool where the fish were feeding. I caught4 fish. Two fish took asize 20 Trico spent spinner, one took asize 16 white spent spinnerand the other took a size 16 brown spent spinner. The lastRainbow was 14 inches. Anyone who is interested in fishing at Rhoades Road, might want to think differently. That was the stretch I wanted to fish today, but upon pulling into the parking space, I noticed a nice BIG sign. The sign stated: Bull in pasture with rest of cattle. That was more than enough notice for me. I headed elsewhere.Once the sun went away, itgot COLD. I waswet wading and I am pretty sure today will be the last day for that. My shoulder is on fire and I will be giving it plenty of rest for the next week or so. I highly doubt I will beOnTheWater during this time. Any questions about where to catch fish or whatbugs to bring, just ask. Use theContact2Bonthewater page or ship me an email at vinny@2Bonthewater.com.
There have been a bunch of good reports on the Sky Blue Outfitters website, go check em' out--click here. Once at the page, scroll to the bottom and click on view guestbook.
Sept 15, 2009
Grandpa and I took the kids to Manatawny Creek today. First we had to gather some worms for the kids to fish with. The kids love wrestling up their own worms!! We got on the creek at about 2 pm and fished until 330pm.The action was nonstop. Plenty ofSmallmouth Bass and Chubs. Little Vinny caught 2beautifulWILD Brown Trout. He was sohappy when I said, it's aBrown Trout. There were plenty of fish taking bugs off the surface when we were there. The fishingshould onlyget better asthe FALLweather takes hold. If you arenotOnTheWater with your kids, thenthey are surely missing out. My two little rugrats had a great time. A little patience and some worm digging can get them hooked for a lifetime.
Sept 10, 2009
Manatawny Creekcontinues to providesome pretty good fishing. Plenty of bugs in the air and the fish were working the bugs. Landed a couple, missed a couple.All fishlanded tonight were stocked fish. Mix ofbrowns and rainbows. Even if you only have a few hours inthe evening, it is worth a trip to Manatawny Creek. You'll certainly enjoy yourself.
Sept 09, 2009
Fished Manatawny Creek for just 2.5 hours last night. There were bugs everywhere but not many fish rising to them. Caught a fewtiny smallmouths. Caught a beautiful Redbreast Sunfishon a small tan caddis pattern. The first fish I caught was a wild Brown Trout that took a bead-bubble midge. I caught 5 trout total, all subsurface and 4 of the trout were wild Browns. I did catch one stocker rainbow on a generic emerger pattern. Water was nice and cool. I was wet wading and it was a little bit chilly. So, get out your dry flies and big brown spinners and have at it. If that doesn't work,fish nymphs below the surface or swing some emergers. I caught the smallies on tiny ant patterns.
Sept 06, 2009
Fished a nameless small creekthat was near a relative's house. Everyone was at the party having a good time and I made a dash to the creek. Figured there might be wild Brook Trout in it. I caught plenty of Creek Chubs, even some big ones, but no Brook Trout. I managed to catch one very pretty Rainbow Trout. I was told it was most likely an escapee from a local pond. I caught most of the chubs on various dry flies or a beadtail caddis. The trout was caught on a small woolhead sculpin pattern.
Sept 02, 2009
Wild Brown Trout Fishing
Theweather is cooling and the wild trout streams should start being very productive. I spent less than 2 hours outthis eveningand caught a handful of wild browns, creek chubs and fallfish. I caught a few year classes of trout, which meanshealthynatural reproduction in this stream. I had two larger fish smash my dry flies, but missed them both !! One and done on those guys. I caught fish on dry flies--caddis and attractors and a sulphur nymph. Here are afew pics:
Rain, Rainand more Rain 8/21
Heat, Heat and more Heat
Try fishing during the night for some catfish or carp.
Early morning topwaters and late evening topwaters are just the ticket to pick up a few bass and stay cool in the process.
Morning trico activity can be fished on Manatawny Creek, Tulpehocken Creek and Little Lehigh Creek. Keep some caddis flies in your box along with terrestrial patterns.
A slow canoe ride down the Schuylkill River is one way to beat the summer heat and catch a few fish. Make sure you have all the proper safety gear and that all PFBC boating laws are adhered to. PFBC Boating Handbook
If you are fishing during the heat of the day, please take water with you. The best way to do this is to freeze a water bottle or two the night before you venture out. Keep the water bottles in a creel or hip pack. As the day moves along thefrozen waterwill thaw, leaving you with nice cool water to drink throughout your fishing day.
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2Bonthewater Guide Service
Historic Oley Valley
Oley, PA 19547
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