Bushkill Creek - Easton PA, Jan 19, 2013

I fished the Bushkill near the town of Easton in mid January. It was a sunny day in the Pocono's but unfortunately partly cloudy in the Lehigh Valley. I fished the C&R, non stocked, section of the Bushkill. Most of my time was spent across from the Crayola building. I wanted to fish this stream due to the fact that I've heard/read that it fishes well in the winter in part from its limestone influence. Even with it being a limestone stream, its water temperature measured similarly to the Pocono freestoners I'd been fishing in January. Mid-day water temp was mid 40's. I fished a dual nymph combo without weight. I mostly used BHPT and BHHE nymphs. There was a local fisherman throwing rapalas there that morning. He provided some useful information to me. He had caught a couple of smaller browns on his rapala further upstream from where I was fishing and had one decent sized brown roll up on his lure 30 yards from where I was fishing. He said that most FF'ers have luck throwing streamers this time of the year so I took his advice. He also explained where I could access Martin's Creek since I planned to drive home the scenic route.

I caught no fish on my first trip to the Bushkill but it has a lot of potential and I think will be a stream I'll hit again soon. There's still a lot of the stream that I haven't fished yet.

On my way home, I stopped and scouted Martins Creek and fished momentarily. No fish but there is surprisingly a lot of open water in the Class A section that flows into the Delaware. There was another FF'er in the upper stretch of Martins, where it is ATW. I'll be coming back to the quaint town of Martin's Creek again soon.

Bushkill Near Crayola

City Fishing

Bushkill Panoram

Stream Side Lunch

Winter fishing in Pocono Creeks - Jan 13, 2013

I fished the MCC and BHC on Jan 13th. It was a partly cloudy day, outside air temp was in the mid 40's, and the water temp was low 40's. It was suppose to be a sunny day so I was hoping that the trout in the creeks might wake out of their winter doldrums but the sun never showed because of the presence of fog all day.

I landed one ugly bow on the MCC. Due to its damaged fins, I'd assume it was a fall stocker. It took a 18 BHPT in the DHALO section. I fished a dual nymph under an indicator all day. Nothing was rising. On my way home, I tried the BHC for less than an hour without luck. Not a great day fishing but what do you expect in January? That's why my fly gear never leaves my vehicle. There will always be that "day" in January and February that is worth trying.
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MCC snow bank

BHC mid-day fog

MCC winter bow

2012 Pocono Fly Fishing - Year In Review

2012 was a great year for fly fishing. It will be remembered by me for the fact that I was catching trout on dry flies in early spring (2-3 months sooner than a "normal" year). The early season dry fly fishing was the best I've experienced in my few years of fly fishing. The abnormal warm winter combined with the warm spring accelerated local hatches by a month in some streams. Fishing was great until about July when the warm stream temperatures likely killed off most of the trout in approved waters. Class A and other wild trout streams likely had some kill but I'm sure fared much better than streams such as the Brodhead and lower McMichael's Creeks.

I fished the Lehigh for the first time in 2012. It's a big river that easily intimidated me at first but I loved it and the fact that it is extremely difficult to access numerous areas of the river. Angler presence is minimal due to those factors. A sack lunch, mountain bike, and your fly gear can lead to an amazing day on the Lehigh!

I began to scout new trout streams that I either read about on the internet or heard from somebody else. Small mountain streams that naturally produce brown and brook trout have become a favorite of mine. The size of the trout is generally smaller, but the scenery, the solitude, and the required "stealthiness" far outweigh the fact that I seldom have my drag run on me.

I caught more trout this year than the previous year, likely due to the fact that my techniques are improving. If I had to estimate, I'd say that I fished approximately 75-100 times in 2012 and easily landed more than that many fish. I had days that I got skunked and days that I caught more than a dozen. Fishing is always hit or miss. The great thing about living in the Pocono's is that I don't have to dedicate a full day to fish. I can leave the house and fish the sulfur hatch for 30 minutes each evening and be home in time to help put my son to sleep. I experience many more fishing days when I spend less than 2 hours on the water.

I made my annual trips to Alaska and the Salmon River in NY. Alaska produced some nice grayling again and a couple of pink salmon while the SR produced some hookups with some large king's but no landings. The SR still frustrates me mostly because I haven't found that "technique" yet. It baffles me how some of the local FF'ers there can catch the kings in the mouth time after time.

I want to try steelhead fishing in either the SR or Eerie PA region in the future but I think that 2013 will mostly consist of fishing/scouting more wild streams in the Pocono's. I'm planning a central PA fishing weekend and at least one trip to the WB of the Delaware. I am still many years away, if ever,  from being bored with PA trout fishing.