April 1st 2018

It's now the first of April and fishing has been good for some time now
Little black stoneflies have been around now for many weeks and the water levels in the streams and the Lehigh river have been just right to fish
I've been out on the main Lehigh for weeks now on the warmer days and have caught some very nice sized brown trout using these little black stoneflies 16-18
Also the streamer fishing has begun to take off now as the water is starting to warm a bit
The Mahoning creek and the lizard creek are both now open to fish as they are early opening creeks here in carbon county
These creeks fish very well early in the season and are very productive throughout the whole season
Call/text or email me for info on fishing these or any other waters in the area

SATURDAY 23RD OF APRIL TRIP

On Saturday morning I met up with a couple guys that wanted to fish the lower Lehigh river.
at 8:00 am we started fishing at the bridge in bowmanstown and soon there was a hatch of hendricksons  size 14 coming off the water by 9:00 we started catching trout on the imitation and soon moved down river to the spot where the Lizard  creek spills into the Lehigh.
here we had more action on the hendricksons and caught more trout.
Most of them were browns with two  large, one @17" and one @ 19" and we also caught two rainbow trout as well
this action went on most all day and we had a great time.
If you can get out  and fish give me a call and we can go have some fun.

FIRST ARTICLE OF 2016

Its been a long time since iv,e posted an article here and so I hope I find your all  healthy and happy and ready for a new fishing season.
This winter was very warm as most all of you know but I had found it not as easy to predict fishing conditions as I had in the past.
the warmer days just did not produce the action I have in the past enjoyed and so this winter I did not hook and land as many trout as i have in the past winters
I also did not catch my winter Dooossie!, like I have in past winters and am not sure why, except to say the trout may have been confused due to the unusually warm weather and the possibility of the hatches of insects being confused also.
This made winter last a little longer as a good sized trout just makes things so much brighter.
This spring has started off slower then usual but I have gotten some better reports as of late from many of my fishing buddies that are out more then I have been.
In the fall, I brought back my camper to do some upgrades and touch ups on as well as a new storm door and repaint, and so on the better fishing days Ive been on that project instead of fishing and every time I look at the old girl I see more things I want to do, like wet sand the polyurethane that I did 4 coats of on the inside of camper on the knotty pine bead board planks that I finished the camper in years back.
the polyurethane is minwax helmsman spar varnish and looks great but I have found that if you use 1200 grit then 1500 grit then 2000 grit wet sanding with each, then use a car finish swirl remover polish, then finish it with a good carnuba wax you can get the finish like that of a fine cars paint finish and it then looks unbelievably AWESOME!  So I am staying on the project til its done and this way out at camp i can simply EAT, SLEEP, DRINK AND FISH! but not necessarily in that order.
This year out in Tioga the snow did not fall at all
I was told they had just over an inch from one tiny system and that was it!
so I really hope we get some good rains this April without the crazy 6 inches in as many hours that seems to occur more now then in years past 

GREEN DRAKE HATCH ON THE UPPER PINE CREEK 2014

This year the green drakes had some tough conditions to deal with. It seemed to rain every other day in late may and early June. These really wet/cool conditions seemed to put a hold on the hatch and keep the numbers of flies down as I did not see the heavy clouds of flies that I have in past years. Plus a flood in mid may did not help matters at all. Then the water went up to over 9 ft down creek at the cedar run gauge and camper trailers on the bank at the camp had to be moved for fear of being washed away.But on Tues the 10th of June the fish finally came up and ate these flies.
I got out early at 6.00 am and right away caught a 3 lb palomino trout on a size 4 long shank green drake coffin fly pattern tied down to 3x. When fishing these or other large mayflies you should tie down to heavier tippet so they wont spin when cast., and don't let anyone tell you "its too heavy" "The trout will see it"  The trout don't care! How do I know? Because I have been using heavy tippet on large flies for 30 years and have caught more trout over 20 inches then almost everyone I know.

Fishing was great! It was as if all the big trout decided to feed on top that day as anywhere I cast I not only hooked a trout but half of them were over 2 lbs. after one hour in the camps lower pool I went up to the next one and caught more fish, then it occurred to me to go up to the big flat above the camp and fish there as it had been heavily stocked with fish, many over 3 lbs. There were not too many green drakes in the air but if I cast my fly on the water I would get a strike and almost all strikes were a hook up. After catching and releasing many more trout from 1 to 3 lbs I hooked a palomino trout that had to go over 5 lbs and 24 inches. This trout when hooked immediately ran to its right and jumped out of the creek turning upside down and at the same time was kicking its tail so fast it sounded like a Pheasants wing, the trout then hit the water and took off upstream so fast pulling the fly out as it swam away at maybe 20 miles per hour,...ZOOM! off it went. Then after re tying  my fly as you should after any action with big fish I hooked a 3 lb male brook trout that had to go 18 inches after releasing him I ran back to the camper to make a sandwich and eat it in record time and went back to the lower pool where I saw another 24 inch palomino trout feeding on the big coffin flies across the pool so I cast three to four times and hooked her. This tout was also about 4 and a half pounds and a solid 24 inches long I played her to my side of the creek and had my iphone videoing the whole fight as I did a few of the other fish. running any camera and fighting a fish at the same time is not easy so the video looks like the ones you see on tv about UFO,S But at least I got it on video.

All in all I caught over 20 trout that day and half were over 2 lbs A few over 3 lbs and two over 5 lbs I figure I caught and released 45lbs of trout that day,.ALL FISH on the same pattern all by 4 pm.                     I then celebrated with a great meal and a great many beers in a very , very hearty manner!

This is the stuff that keeps me going through the rest of the year and on those cold winter days, knowing the drakes will come again.                  

May 4th to May 13th report on the Pine creek north central PA.

This week has been great fishing on the Pine with water levels very good and temps perfect.  In the morning water temps have been mid to upper 40s and mid to upper 50s in the afternoon. Hatches have been great with plenty of Caddis in size 16 and 14 tan wing green body.This year they have been so thick that at times the flies were 5 inches apart over the creek. And on some days it seemed like they were there all day. But that was back in the end of April and the water was very cold and you could only move fish to beadheads with lots of split shot.Now the trout arte very willing to take them in a dry fly form here but even more so they will take the Hendrickson in a size 16 although they are on their way out. Red quills were working well also in a size 16 as well as Adams attractor flies in same size.

Most days start out with Me fishing Bead head nymphs size 16 in a green Caddis pattern with a prince nymph and a pheasant tail tied into my leader and lots of split shot to get em down. this way I cover all food sources and keep all fish happy and well fed. I fish the riffles in camp and do pretty good some mornings I stung maybe 18 landing 9 one day. later in the morning I can fish dries and start getting a steady pick of trout that way for the rest of the day off and on til dark with after 4 in the afternoon being best time for most action.

Yesterday a friend and I went down creek all the way to slate run and thinking ahead like I try to do I brought some Green Drakes with me just in case. I'm sure glad I did as they were just starting to show in the afternoon there and at Navel run I caught a 15 inch rainbow on the male Drake pattern I was tossing. We did not move to many more fish but got three before leaving to come back to my camp on the upper Pine some 30 miles through the most  beautiful mountain farm country you might see in PA. The weather has been typical with thunderstorms almost everyday somewhere out here and today one must have been heavy up creek this afternoon cause when I went to fish the water was high and off color a bit so I got my steamer rod with the rio 150 density compensated line on the reel out and casted some big rabbit fur flies along the shore and got one tiger trout that went 13 inches then I went back to my site to make dinner early as not much was happening on the water.  

Over all its been a great trip and I cant wait to get back here in another week or so to keep up the great fishing. we stock many big fish very soon and The green drakes should be on up here in camp in another two weeks here and that's what I live for. BIG TROUT ON BIG FLIES!   

3/10/2014 TRIP TO THE PEQUEST RIVER

Yesterday A buddy of mine and I fished the Pequest river near the hatchery. The snow is still pretty deep up there and now very slushy. It makes for tough walking along the bank but its worth it considering how good the fishing can be. As is the case most all winter we had to fish very small nymphs. When using size 20 flies I like to tie into my leader Rios,shock gum. Its a rubber band like material that is about 26 thousands of an inch thick, so I tie it up leader just off the first section. This way when you hook a solid three pound trout it cant pull the fly free so easily. Its hard to tie in though however I find a uni knot works for me also a surgeons knot will work as well but the stuff is so stretchy and soft it is a challenge to get to stay tied, and you MUST cover your knots with Loons knot sense. Its so good to have in place cause it holds onto those doosey fish that we all want to catch. Last year I caught a solid 25 1/2 inch female rainbow on it right here on the Pequest that went almost 6lbs I was using 4x and if I did not use it she would have pulled the tiny pheasant tail (20) fly she took.We started off right near the lot and my buddy hooked a good rainbow within mins It poped off after a few mins of play and he fished on,.. A little while later he hooked and played another @ about 17 inches and that fish shook the hook at his feet. He then said to me "alright, give me some of that stuff " I tied it into his leader and he then went downstream where about a half hour afterwards I could hear him hollering "Hey Paul"  I go stompin through the snow down there to find him tight-lined to an 18 Inch male rainbow that had to go 3lbs he played it into the net and that fish only had the fly in its upper jaw at the very outside edge of its mouth. If he had not used the shock gum I think it would likely have pulled free like the other trout he had hooked as he was on 5x fluorocarbon tippet. Many guys say you HAVE to go to 6x at least with flies that small and some use 7x. I find this is not true, Not true at all! I fish stone flies on 3x and they are often size 16. I drift them through some slow pools and I have caught many good fish that way.  However fluorocarbon has almost NO STRETCH. so trout can pull flies right out as the size 20 hooks have a very small purchase when set. We fished for a couple of more hours and landed almost all the fish we both hooked. I think that if more guys used Shock gum they would also have a better catch rate. Like I always say,"when it comes to big fish",... "SHOULDA,COULDA,WOULDA" is a terrible thing to have to say!
Laying in bed thinking "maybe i shoulda this or coulda that is so unsettling. My pillow however is very soft!                 

NOVEMBER TRIP TO OLCOTT NY

On the 3rd of Nov I went up to Olcott NY to fish the 18 mile creek for the Brown trout and Steelhead that are now up creek to spawn. I stay at the Lighthouse motel 716 628 2570. I find it clean,warm and comfortable. But most of all  AFFORDABLE! My fishing buddies and I pay 660.00 for a 4 bed, two bedroom apartment with a kitchen and living room for a week, Thats 165.00 each and that is a deal.
The motel is on Lake Ontario and the creek runs down into the lake right next to it. Fisherman's park is 1 mile up the road from it and you can park your truck in a large lot and walk down the hill to the creek there. Burts dam is just a short walk upstream from there and the fishing can be fantastic.They have a new kobota utility vehicle that you can ride up and down the hill for a buck each way and its nice cause I can bring down my Coleman stove and make chicken soup creekside for all who want it.When its 40 degrees and blowin even lipton instant soup tastes good but my homemade beats that by miles, ask anyone whos had it.
This year it rained a lot and were talking 8 inches since Oct 1st, I was told. So that brought in the browns and steelies in big numbers with a few Chinook salmon as well.The water was off color and high. The fish were very willing to bite.We were using egg fly patterns mostly with pink or red being the best colors.
A floating line and an indicator up near the top of a 7ft leader tied down to 1x fluorocarbon. A couple split shot to take it down and let it swing though the current. You want the fly as close to the bottom as possible.
I see many fisherman using lighter tippet, I feel this is not necessary as I seem to Hook just as many fish as they do and I don't have to chase them all over to land them. Leaders and tippet are a personal thing, some guys will tell you this,others will tell you that. What works for one guy may not work for you, so nothing is written in stone.What works in one creek or river wont work so good in another. Go out and see what you like to use and use it .Once you find your "formula" you will catch fish easy and YOUR WAY.
On Tues I went to The Oak orchard river and fished the Archery club section and had a great time.
Here they have a great big pavilion right on the bank of the river that has a big kitchen and they make  terrific meals. For 5 bucks you get a great big breakfast til 10:30 am then at 11:30 they serve a great big lunch for 7 bucks The pavilion has a big wood stove and its burning hot. There are easy chairs around it and you can BYOB and smoking IS allowed.The river bottom is very smooth as the stones are all small so its easy wading. The place is awesome. here there seems to be a better variety of fish as the river supports Brown trout, Steelhead, Chinnok Salmon, Landlocked Atlantic Salmon and lots of big rainbows too. Oak orchard river is 28 miles from olcott on route 18 east, but about 24 miles out there you cross the Johnson creek.
Johnson creek is a little smaller then the other two and has the same fish in it as 18 mile creek. It also happens to be nicely uncrowded as its not as large and frankly overlooked by most fisherman.
Here you have to take the back roads to find the best fishing and I think that is why its overlooked.
Johnson creek runs along 18 but it is easier to fish if you go off 18 onto the other road that runs along it and most guys don't want to be bothered doing that, and nobody carry's a map anymore.Get the Delorme map of NY its like 40 or 50 pages and has ALL BACK ROADS IN IT. Thats what I have used for 20 years now and I find ALL the best spots easy.