 New
in 2005 - Floats
For Four, Say No More!
Fly Fish PA now can accommodate four person
float trips. With the off-season acquisition of a 2005
ClackaCraft 15LP - we are your answer for corporate outings,
reunions, get-togethers or just a good 'ole fashion day of
hangin' out with your buds! Leave the golf course behind and
hit the water! Contact
us if you have any questions.
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April 25,
2005 - Central PA UPDATE
As is normally the case - few fish were rising
the other day on Penns - even though the bugs were quite numerous.
The grannoms are probably about over, but it does not mean
the fish will still not be looking for them. Next up are the
Hendricksons, and these should be in full swing very soon.
Now is the time to stay on the water late and keep an eye
out for the spinners.
By far the best way to get into consistant action
is to nymph the pocket water and the deeper runs. Even on
sunny days the fish may still feed in these more well protected
areas.
Don't forget to check out our
Penns Weekend Package. It is taking place this weekend
- and we still have a few spots available. Streamside accommodations,
meals and complete hands-on guiding!!!
Attached are a few pics from this past week.
Penns Creek in the Catch and Release section
got stocked with 17,000 fingerlings two years ago. We did
not turn up too many of these, but the wild trout - like the
above and larger - are quite numerous.
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This beauty was taking grannoms just a few
feet off the bank - it went about 15" or so.
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Central PA Limestone Water
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April
21, 2005 - UPDATE - scroll down for lots
of other great info
Right now Francis E Walter is on the 'fill'
as called for by the 2005
Plan. The 250cfs release is the result. See if you
can get out with these flows. Bugs to keep an eye out
for are - little black stones - 14-20; Quill Gordons
14; Blue Quils; Hendricksons - 14. Look for water temps
in the 50s, then dropping into the 40s this weekend
with the colder weather moving in.
On Penns look for hendrickson and the
grannoms. Flows are low, but with rain on the way -
look for an increase. The numbers of fish in this stream
should be really impressive. We look with great anticipation
the planned shocking in June by the PFBC as well as
the numbers of fin clipped stockies we catch and their
size.
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The chart above shows
FEW on the rise.
On about April 16 the slow was cut back to about 250cfs.
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April
15, 2005 - Lehigh Update
For the folks on the Lehigh
this weekend - look for artificially low flows. The
Army Corps has managed to release all the water from
the event that gave the 1955 flood a run for its money.
FEW is currently standing at about 1297' - three feet
below its 'conservation pool' level of 1300'. Beginning
next week the 2005 Plan calls for the lake to
begin filling to 1300-1335'. Look for ACE to start skimming
water this weekend since inflow will be more than the
outflow. Click here
for the release schedule.
Look for little black stoneflies - especially
so on bright afternoons. With these flows some fish
may be looking up in the slower water.
Good
luck on OPENING DAY 2005!!!
This guy has got the right idea
heading into
opening day weekend. Ha!
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The step down releases
pictured above are a result of the highest ever flood
storage event. The lake reached 1407' in elevation.
The prolonged 7,000+cfs release does not do the river
well, but without the dam the river would be running
at over
20,000cfs at the White Haven gage.
1,407' equals 16.36bg or 46% of Flood
Storage. The lake at this elevation is approx. 157'
deep atthe bottom gate.
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April
11, 2005 - SE PA UPDATE
The Crane
Flys are about. Look for these insects to be skimming
across the surface at high speeds. At times they can
drive the trout crazy! When the Cranes are hatching
the trout are looking up..
Flows
are great all across the state, except for the larger
waters. Once again - going into our third season -
we face higher than normal waters. As a trout fisherman....I
don't know how you could ask for anything but
With
no rain in the forcast and seasonable temps - opening
day should be a goodie!!! Let the hatches begin!!!!!
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April 9,
2005 - UPDATE
The Army Corps
has just released a revised 'target' flow schedule for this
spring/summer/fall. Please check out the chart below for
a complete breakdown by weekend. Once again we must realize
the targets are just that...Mother Nature will be the final
call. Please note
weekend targets ranging from 750-1000cfs in May and June
have decreased with this plan. For the original plan - click
here.
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April 4, 2005 - FALLING
SPRINGS REPORT & UPDATE
A work related trip to western PA provided
just enough of a window of time to hit Falling Springs. It
has been years since the last time on this piece of historic
water and it is just as I remember....beautiful bows and all!
Water temp was 52 and flows were on the high
side, but clear. I did not notice any bugs at all and there
were no rising fish to be found. I was really hoping to see
an olive hatch, but that never materialized...so having said
that, subsurface flies were gonna have to be the ticket. And
they were!!
It was a great day on the water and I did
not see another angler! Hit it up if you have a chance.
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A small Falling Springs rainbow. Beauty!!
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A nice size rainbow which ate a nitro.
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MORE
RAIN! Francis E Walter is on the rise. It
will most likely top-out at about the level it went
to after IVAN. What happens with rain events like this
is - FEW acts like a catch basin for runoff from the
Pocono Plateau. The Army Corps will close the valve
- during the event they went to about a 230cfs release,
but with a mounting head pressure - release has risen
to about 300cf as of writing. They will keep this release
until levels subside enough in the lower Lehigh and
the lower Delaware to warrent a higher release...then
watch out! Look for a greatly increased release.
It is worth noting that at 1,400' in elevation - FEW
still has 60% of flood capacity available. At the
peak of runoff - 20,000cfs+ was being dumped into FEW.
Add this water to the Walnutport
Gage - and flows would have been 50,000cfs+...flood
stage in Walnutport is approx 17,500cfs. OUCH!!!
To follow the height of FEW - go here.
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The chart above shows the climbing FEW
lake pool elevation. |
Obviously smaller waters will run off relatively
quick, but there is a huge amount of water in the ground so
they are gonna stay high, clear, and cold. You can forget
about the larger waters for the immediate future. |
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April 1, 2005 - TULLY REPORT
We kicked off the fishing season on Tuesday
with Ted who came in from Chicago to visit his in-laws. As
part of the deal with the "Mrs." - Ted was permitted
to fish one afternoon. Things didn't look good for Ted to
get some time on the water as a result of mother nature dumping
2.5" + of rain on us Monday. Everything was high and
off color. The only saving grace was that the Army Corps would
have to begin holding water back from Blue Marsh Lake for
flood control. Tuesday rolled around and the Corps was only
releasing 120cfs from the dam. This made the Tully above Rebers
Bridge very fishable, actually it was a bit low - crazy!!
Ted decided he wanted to get out and give it a shot. We started
at the water works area and worked some nymphs in the runs
and deep pools. Nothing produced here, so after a few hours
we moved down to Rebers Bridge and worked the water above
Plum Creek - because below it the Tully chocolate milk! After
a bit of time working a good run, Ted hooked up with what
we thought was a nice brown. Turned out to be a 14" sucker.
The fish really gave Ted a good fight before coming to the
net. Other than that, it was a very slow day. Ted got to stretch
his legs a bit and see some different water that is not common
in the mid-west. In addition, he learned a few different nymphing
techniques and refined his casting technique, so I guess the
day wasn't a total loss.
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Ted working a run in the water works area.
Check out the low water!!
The window slammed shut at
about 3pm!
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On April 26
we will be giving a presentation on the Lehigh River. Yeah,
you'll see a few pics of fish, and the scenery and the bugs
- but what we will really dig into are the issues surrounding
the river.
We will touch on it all! Topics
will be: flows, whitewater, 1,450', stratification, Ivan,
ACOE, by-pass valves, cold water, tributaries, AMD, and what
you can do to make the Lehigh better! Don't know what all
of the above means? Come and learn. Get involved!
QUOTE FROM DRBC
DOCUMENT: "Changes in F.E. Walter operating policies
could provide flow augmentation benefits for whitewater rafting,
establishment of a naturally reproducing trout fishery, and
other purposes."
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| Lehigh
River Evening Rise Float |
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Be sure to check out our Lehigh River Evening
float trips. With everyone's schedule being jammed packed
just about 24/7...these trips will maximize your time on the
river...putting you into the fish when they are most active.
What
You Get:
2-3
hrs floating on from 6-9pm to coincide with the evening hatch
Flies, gear and complete
instruction
Beverages/Snacks supplied
Rates =
1 person @ $145 or
2 person @ $170
50% deposit at time of booking confirms
reservation
For any questions - shoot us an email.
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Fly Patterns Page Update
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Caddis
Worm
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Hopefully by now all of us have gotten a good jump on
that list of flies-to-tie. If you are like me, there are
always those new must have patterns, but most of the time
is spent wrapping the old stand-bys. Pictured here is
one of those standbys... A go-to pattern for us!
It has been recently added to our Fly
Patterns Page - check it out!!
We feel this is a must have fly when fishing just about
any stream in PA. Use this as a dropper from either a
dry or nymph or as the lead fly in a dropper rig. Very
effective..
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