2016

December 2, 2016

This is Gryffmieister, he is  9 years old and shot his first deer this evening. Story goes, Gryffmeister's Dad was being too picky and the Meister wanted some snack sticks. So, Gryffmeister stepped up and got the job done. 150 yard shot and the deer ran onto the adjacent property. Being the awesome outdoor folks that they are, Gryffmeister and his Dad secured permission to follow the deer onto the neighbors property. Low and behold, the trail of blood led them to Gryffmeister's first kill. Great job Gryffmeister!!!

October 25, 2016

GET TO THE SALMON RIVER NOW  

Hit the Salmon River over the weekend with Nate.  After seeing a flow of 185CFS for most of the salmon season, the area finally received some much needed rain.  We fished Friday evening and found many fish in the UFZ.  We crossed the river around 6pm or so to head back to the motel.   Found out later that the flow was bumped to 1800 CFS at about 7pm.  My goodness was it ripping.  Lower sections of the river were running over 2000 CFS, which is not safe to fish in.  DSR was closed on Saturday and Sunday.  People were still able to locate fish by finding side channels, braids or smaller tribs to fish.  Nate and I were fortunate enough to find some water that was fishable.  Great trip, many fish hooked with a couple landed each day.  Problem was, where we were fishing, there was no area to beach the salmon.  We had to net the salmon in knee-waist high water.  We opted to take the handle off the net to keep our traveling weight down.  Tricky, but we managed a few in the net each day.  We had fish in front of us nearly the entire time.  Death Stonefly and DSS streamers were the GO-TO flies.  Squiggler tagged a few fish.  Managed 2 fish on egg patterns, but eggs were not on the menu.  Did not see a steelhead the entire weekend, nor any Coho for that matter.  WIth the crazy flow to the river, the river should have fish top to bottom.  It was the first real surge of water this season and I'm certain, the salmon came swimming in.  Steelhead should be closely behind, pretty sure they are not in any huge numbers yet, but with plenty of salmon migrating into the river, air and water temps lowering--the steelhead should be coming.  There were a good number of hook-ups each day.  Consistent action minus short lulls here and there.  

Nate with a 31 pounder.  

September 13, 2016

Salmon run has not begun yet.  Warm water and high air temps will keep the fish in the lake.  There are a few fishin the river and I mean one or two, but nothing to drive 5 hours for.  A cool down and a nice release of water will bring them in.  Get those Death Stonefly, DSS Streamer and egg pattern orders in.  Don't wait until the last second.  Locally, river fishing has been pretty good.  Smallie bite has been steady all Summer and managed two decent fish last week.  Fishing at night has been productive.  Carp and cats on the menu.  Trout fishing, don't trout fish unless you are heading to Central PA.  The only section of the Schuylkill that has not been productive for Smallies was in Leesport.  That area was the dead sea.  

September 1, 2016

Spent the last few weeks out and about a few times.  Managed some catfish while fishing with friends.  Even landed a 17.5 pound carp.  Smallies are still the main draw in the summer with fish nailing Gurglers, Clouser Minnows and crawfish patterns.  Hopefully the temps will start to cool down and we'll get some rain in the forecast.  Check out Vin's Bug Shoppe.  Salmon and Steelhead season is just around the corner!!

August 3, 2016

Super hot the last few weeks but it is starting to cool down.  Rain this past week had most streams looking pretty good.  Can't catch them from your couch.  Almost time for school to start up.  Get out there and "Live to be OnTheWater".

July 18, 2016

Another week of pretty good fishing.  From Flatheads to panfish, the bite was pretty good.  Smallie fishing has been pretty good in the evening.  Weather is insanely hot and muggy and trout waters should be pretty warm.  Put the trout gear away and hit the River, don't care what River, just get out on the water.  Be a River Rat.   

July 12, 2016

Welp, I hate the heat and muggy weather.  Fished the other weekend with Nate on the Susquehanna River near Shamokin Dam and the fake Statue of Liberty.  Numbers were OK, but we didn't manage any bigger fish.  Nate did tag a large fish that broke him off.  Was out with Vin on a local reservoir and we did OK fishing for Gills, with one 11-12 inch Bluegill landed.  Hit the river for some Flathead action and Vin managed to land a nice Channel Catfish and lose 4 other fish.  Two were very large and pretty certain they were of the Flathead Catfish variety.   Look for Tricos early morning if you are chasing trout.  We did spend one weekend attending the PA Trappers Association 79th Annual Rendezvous.  It was awesome.  The kids skinned out a Muskrat, competed in a trap setting contest and watched many demonstrations pertaining to sport we do not participate in.  It was very educational and the folks were all so dang friendly.  

May 30, 2016  Memorial Day

What a difference a week makes.  Sun was hot and blistery most of the week.  Pannies, Carp, Bass, Catfish and Trout fishing have all been productive this past week.  Can't catch em' if you are on your couch.  Do your best to "Live to be OnTheWater".   School is nearly finished for the year, get those rugrats on the water !!!  

May 23, 2016

Plenty of bugs on the water in various life stages.  Evening fishing should be productive, but with the cooler weather and cloud cover--  any time on the water should be productive.  Smallie fishing should be getting into gear.  Penns Creek Angler has noted that the Green Drake has made its annual appearance.  Stop in and see Bruce Fisher and get the flies you need.  

May 16, 2016

Plenty of trout still around in our local waters.  A few bugs on the water, look for caddis, sulphurs, cahills and yellow stoneflies.  Don't be afraid to fish new waters, get outside your comfort zone and have fun. Fishing half-N-half flies has really produced, along with cahill emergers.

May 08, 2016

Spent the weekend with Nate up on Penns Creek volunteering time with Total Outdoors.  They had a Veteran Appreciation Day and it was a hit.  Many folks there having a great time casting away and shooting the bull.  The fishing was spot on also.  Rain and storms hit the entire time we were there.  The creek was in fabulous condition, but not many fish working the surface.  March Browns were everywhere.  So many Duns and Spinners, it was amazing.  Sulphurs were out and about also.  I'd guess there were probably 10 different species of bugs on the water.   We landed a good number of fish with a few pigs in the mix.  Fish ranged from 6-inch wild brookies to a 18-inch Rainbow with a 16-inch wild brown trout thrown in for good measure.  Fish were taking March Brown and Sulphur soft hackle and wet flies.  Nate tagged a few with a slumpbuster, including a 15-inch smallmouth bass.  Second day out I fished with the spinning rod.  The rapala stickbait nabbed a few fish in some high and crazy water.  Berkley pink trout worm also did well.  We covered miles of water and explored new areas of Penns Creek.  Magical --  is the only word that comes to mind when in that part of Pennsylvania.  

May 5, 2016

Local waters look outstanding and should fish well heading into the weekend.  Bug wise, who knows what you will find OnTheWater.  If we get rain, fish large streamers as the water is rising and then again as the water is lowering.  Fish feel safe and secure when there is a good flow and a little color to the water.  Stickbaits will also do some damage as will live bait.  I moved a few large fish this past week tossing stickbaits.  

April 14, 2016

The past few weeks have been outstanding.  Fish were on Caddis for a week and many fish smacked a Caddis Dry.  Now, the Hendrickson Mayfly has arrived and the fish are on them.   Fish darker nymphs during the morning (if caddis are not around) or tie on a HATCHER nymph and get ready.  Swinging emerger or soft-hackles will get you into fish.  With the Great White Fleet rolling around and stocking fish, it will be hard to beat a wooly bugger or an egg pattern.  Hopefully the Winter weather is over and Spring will move forward.  So, get out there and "Live to be OnTheWater".

March 27, 2016

Welp, the last few weeks have been pretty good fishing wise.  Little Black Stoneflies were the ticket, then it switched to caddis.  Mayflies are starting to appear sporadically but according to a few folks, there are caddis out and about.  The Youth Opener was the best one to date.  Weather was chilly in the morning but warm early afternoon.  My rugrats had a great time and Zoe landed a 19-inch Rainbow Trout on a piece of a nightcrawler.  Vin landed the most, but lost the .05 cent bet he had with his sister as to who was going to land the biggest fish.  The kids were really excited for the opener this year.

Nate gave me a buzz today and reported that he and Fuzzhead were watching a bunch of suckers on their spawn run.  Last year, Nate and I found a motherload of suckers around April 12th.  

March 10, 2016

Another very warm day and once the sun was high in the sky, the fish stopped on the surface.  Which was OK, they took a stonefly nymph without hesitation.  Spring Blue Quill dry fly worked again, the one I use is a very simple pattern.  Little Black Stonefly dry took a few fish also and I managed to use a size 22 Griffith's Gnat to fool a fish or two.  I was out early afternoon and had a great time.  I'm guessing most folks are getting rid of their cabin fever.  Most paths were freshly worn down and looked well traveled.  Outstanding.

March 09, 2016

The warm weather has the fish looking up.  Spent the afternoon tossing dry flies.  Spring Blue Quill, small CDC/Elk Hair Caddis and a size 14 Little Black Stonefly all fooled fish.  The most explosive strikes were to the larger LBS.  Skittering the caddis and LBS brought the fish to the surface.  The warm weather should stick around for the next week or so.  Clean up the fly line and "Live to be OnTheWater".

Febuary 28, 2016

Fished Falling Spring Branch with Nate.  Explored a good bit and with the air temperatures over 60 degrees, I was hoping to see some trout sipping midges.  That was not the case.  Managed to tangle with a few fish and had a great time walking and checking out the stream.  It was probably close to 15 years since I last fished there.   It is a wonderful piece of water that all PA Anglers should fish.  

January 2, 2016

Happy New Year

Spent the last days of 2015 and the first day of 2016 fishing with Nate in Happy Valley.  Recent rains had the streams up and moving, but for the most part, very fishable.  Idea was to hit a different stream everyday--  Big Fishing Creek, Little Juniata, Penns and Spring Creek.  Side trips to Cherry Run and Logan Branch were in the mix.  First day out and about was spent on Big Fishing Creek.  Creek was up and finding fish wasn’t easy.  We moved a few, tagged a few and I think we only landed a single fish between us.  We started at the Tylersville Fish Hatchery and worked our way downstream.  Walked to the bridge, then moved to a lower stretch of water.  Simply beautiful water.   Air temp was in the 40s most of the day.  

After reading reports of Penns being high and the Little J was the same, opted for Spring Creek on day 2.  Air temp was 38 degrees when we headed out the door.  Started at the Stackhouse School, Fisherman’s Paradise.  It was still dark and Nate landed a fish.  We were both tossing streamers.  Hit the ditch for a short bit just to check it out.  Not many fish, but enough sitting there to keep somebody busy for a few hours.  We headed upstream landing a fish here and a fish there.  Mostly tossing streamers, but I did try nymphing and all I did was lose flies.  So back to a large meaty treat I went.  Nate was rolling, tagging or landing fish all morning long.  Had lunch downtown Bellefonte and watched MONSTER trout swimming around and fighting ducks for bread.  The water was really ripping.  Headed to Logan Branch and drove along it top to bottom.  It was really ripping and tough to fish.  We didn’t stay overly long and headed to lower Spring Creek.  It was beyond fishable, but we tried anyway.  Decided to head upstream to Benner Spring hatchery.  Great decision.  My shoulders were sore and I was tossing stickbaits while Nate continued to coax fish to slam a streamer.  My brown trout Pin’s Minnow cracked after landing a few fish with it.  Guess I nailed a rock.  That lure has landed hundreds of trout over the years.  No worry, tied on a Rapala Floater in Brown Trout, 3.5 inches and it was game on.  Fish  slashing like mad.  Landed a few fish, tagged a few fish.  The last hour of daylight was a blast.   

New Year’s Day had an air temp of 28 degrees and a dusting of snow on the ground when we left.  Flurries on and off all day.  Frozen guides were an issue most of the morning.  Decision was made to hit Spring Creek near Benner Springs Hatchery.  Plan was to hit the productive water I fished the evening prior.  But it was dark going out and dark going in, so we strolled right past it.  Walked to a bridge that was closed off and there was a PFBC parking lot.  Heavy water, but we found some fish.  We waded downstream and continued to move fish all morning long.  Fish were all over the place.  I opted to put away the large meaty treat and use a smaller streamer.  Magic.  Fished back to the SUV and had lunch.  After lunch we fished downstream a nice distance.  Picking up fish here and there.  I switched to the stickbait and had a few fish slashing at it.  Managed a spawned out 15-inch fish.  Nate and I talked later about this fish because I said nice fish and Nate was like, but the rod wasn’t  even bent.  Rod is a Carrot Stix Medium action rod--  6-12 pound test.  It is super stiff and I have landed Brook Trout and near 30-pound Flathead Catfish on this rod.  Very effective and versatile stick.  Very light in the hand and helps ease my shoulder pain.  
We walked and waded miles and miles and miles on this trip.  Learned plenty about fishing, tactics and enjoyed some most awesome scenery.  
All my wading gear is currently in the freezer to prevent the spread of the New Zealand Mudsnail.  This hitchhiking invasive species is not welcome in any other water.  So, read the signs and do what needs to be done to stop the spread of all invasive species.  It is not a joke, it is not a suggestion--  anglers need to clean their gear before fishing other waters.  Get it done and stop the spread of invasive species.

  

February 8, 2016

Well, this ice fishing season, I managed barely over an hour of time at Antietam Lake.  The weather has been very unpredictable and it seems every winter over the last few years, gets goofier and goofier.  Streams are flowing but waters are cold.  Local lakes look to be, not in good shape so far as ice fishing goes.  Remember folks, no fish is worth dying over.  Guys are using planks to get on the ice at Ontelaunee Lake.  That stuff isn't for me.  It is almost time for the Great White Fleet to be rolling around.  Hoping the weather for the Mentored Youth day is warmer than it was last year.  It would be nice for 70 degrees or so on that day.  Get those fly boxes cleaned up and fly line cleaned off.  Grab a nice coffee and tie those early Spring flies.  If you need flies, give me a shout.  I'll get your custom order tied up and shipped out promptly.  As always, "Live to be OnTheWater".

Interested in learning how to tie flies?  Give me a shout via Email, trying to form classes now. A beginners class, Earth Day Class and Father's Day Class.