The fishing in the area has been pretty good lately.  Two weeks ago we fished a creek one evening and got a decent smallmouth and had another fish on.  That Friday evening we decided to try out Ladue Reservoir for our first time and caught a bunch of fish.  We fished off the causeway and brought in a bunch of white perch, bluegills, and a few warmouths all on jigs tipped with a worm. 

Last Saturday morning we headed up to fish a local river.  Caught 2 smallmouth bass, a crappie, a decent walleye, and a few bluegills.  The bass, walleye, and crappie hit jigs with Gulp and we got the bluegills on worms.  After fishing there we decided to do a little white bass fishing and caught about 20 on almost anything we threw at them.  Jigs, Gulp, crankbaits, and flies all produced fish.  Since the fishing was so good we went back the next day and caught no white bass, only a crappie and a perch.  We didn't see anyone else get any either.  The fish were on fire one day and gone the next.  After there we hit a different river on our way home.  Ended up catching a white bass, carp, and 3 nice hybrid striped bass.

Thursday evening we fished a local lake and creek.  The water level was really low.  We didn't find any crappie in the lake, but caught a few green sunfish and warmouths.  In the creek we got a bunch of little crappie, a decent bass, and a small northern pike.

Friday evening we made another trip to NW Pennsylvania.  Although the water level really dropped since we last fished there, the one creek still managed produced a few smallmouths on crankbaits. Saturday morning we fished a nearby stream.  The creek was pretty low and we only got a bullhead, a bluegill, a perch, and a chub.  We saw multiple muskies and walleye but they wouldn't hit anything.  Downstream I found a hole with some rising trout, so I tied on a dry fly and got an aggressive hit but couldn't get the hook set.  The fish were spooked after that.  After there we fished a different spot and got a crappie and hooked one bowfin.  Since the fishing was very slow there we gave Sugar Lake a try for our first time and got lots of little bluegills, a bunch of decent crappie, and a nice bass.  All caught on streamers.  We also spotted 2 chain pickerel in the shallows but they wouldn't eat anything.  Sunday morning on our way back home we fished the headwaters of a popular stocked and wild trout stream and caught 2 native brook trout and hooked a bigger fish(probably a brown) on streamers.  A great couple weeks on the water!

Wild Trout, Bass, Bowfin, and Pike

This weekend was our first big wild trout trip of the year. We fished up for about 3/4 of a mile and only got one chub, then found a promising hole and got our first wild rainbow trout of the year.  Then the next hole upstream we got a wild brown that was probably 17-18 inches!  Both very colorful fish.  We fished the next couple holes and got a few bites, and even had on another fish but lost it at my feet.  I got hits from both dries and nymphs. 

The next stream we went to is one of my favorites and was the creek my brother and I both caught our first ever wild brookies in.  I lost track of how many fish we caught here, but it was in the 20s I think.  We covered about a mile and a half and just about every good hole and run we either caught a fish in or spooked one.  All the fish here slammed dry flies, didn't have to tie on a nymph or streamer.

We took a lunch break and then decided to try out another creek we never fished before.  On our way there we made a pit stop at a very tiny creek on the side of the road and caught 2 nice natives in about 5-10 minutes!  So we got to the target stream and only managed 1 brook trout and a chub, but it was still fun. 

Our last fishing spot was a larger creek.  The creek, really a river, was pretty high and muddy but we still were able to catch 2 very nice smallmouth bass on jigs with Gulp minnows.  We even saw a bald eagle fly by. 

This morning we got up very early to try it out again but only ended up with one little bass.  We headed to a different part of the creek and got skunked,  so we decided to switch waterways.  At the spot we caught a bunch of little bluegills and shiners, and also caught our first bowfin of the year on one of the shiners.  I was able to see a couple of bowfin also, so they are now coming into the shallow water to spawn.  At this same spot we caught tons of crappie last year, but didn't get any today or the last time we fished it, so I don't know what's up.  They might not have moved in yet. 

After there we went to search for white bass. We didn't catch any, the run might not have started yet, but we did catch a nice northern pike pushing 30in.  We also caught a bunch of small bluegills, perch, and hooked a carp.  It was a great weekend!

Friday evening we fished the upper DHALO section on Neshannock Creek. Got two right away on buggers drifted under an indicator behind the shop. I noticed some fish rising(to flies and 2 rose to my indicator!) so I tied on an elk hair caddis and ended up getting 3 on top, and missed a bunch of others. Mostly caddis were hatching, but I did see a few mayflies.

Got up real early Saturday morning to fish it again.  We were the second ones in the creek and started catching fish right away on streamers, although I did see a few fish rise. Had to deal with some ice on the guides but it wasn't too bad. Fished from the shop down about a mile. Caught most of them by the shop, but also some farther down. Between the two of us we got around 17 fish, mostly rainbows but a bunch of browns too. 

After Neshannock we decided to give a nearby special regs section a try. Caught 5, mostly on small streamers and the green weenie. Some fish were rising so I tried a dry and got two hits but couldn't get the hook set. Even caught 2 little suckers, one on a bugger and another on a green weenie. 

Both of the streams were at a good level. 

Friday we headed out to New Castle. PA to do some more trout fishing.  We fished the same small creek we fished on the opener, and there was actually more leftover fish than I thought.  The water was still way too low and clear.  The fish would come up to my fly and reject it at the last second.  Ended up catching a decent smallmouth bass and a shiner.  Did hook a few trout though but didn't land any.

Saturday we decided to try out a nearby lake.  It's been I think 3 years since we fished it last,  and it was in the summer so this was our first time targeting trout there.  When we first got there it was a largemouth on every other cast before they became spooky.  Also got two decent sized crappie.  The lake also got re-stocked with rainbows while we were there, and after the fish got dumped in it was one fish after another!  Ended up with 20 or so trout.  Most of the fish were caught on small streamers. 

Trout Opening Weekend, Bass, and Panfish

Yesterday was the opening day of trout season in Pennsylvania.  We fished the same stream we do every year.  The creek was very low which made fishing in the shallower runs very tough.  Every time we would walk up to the shallower water all the fish would just dart up or down stream.  We still managed to catch many trout(20 or so) in the deeper holes , and even a bonus smallmouth bass!.  Live minnows produced the most fish. 

After fishing there, we took a break for lunch and then headed to a few spots on Neshannock Creek.  Every spot had some people, but the water there was very low too and we decided not to fish.

Our last trout stop for the day was a smaller creek.  The fish were extremely spooky there also and hard to catch.  I got one trout, and had a few hits as well but didn't land them.  My brother did catch a few suckers though.

After dinner we decided to head up to Tamarack Lake.  The water level was still very low.  We didn't catch anything in the lake, but did very well with small crappie and a few perch and gills in the outflow.  The fish hit small streamers and live minnows. 

This morning our first stop was a local marsh.  The first spot we fished which produced lots of bowfin and crappie last year only gave up 2 bass and a few golden shiners.  It's still a little early though.  The next spot we fished we found TONS of crappie.  We slammed them on streamers and jigs.  On our way back home we stopped at a few spots on Lake Wilhelm.  The first spot I only caught 1 little bass, and the second spot produced 1 crappie, a very small bass, a perch, and two bluegills. 

It was a great decision getting a way from the overcrowded stocked trout streams and spooky fish and fishing warmwater instead.  Overall a great weekend!





Mosquito and PA Trout

On Friday we fished Mosquito Lake and the spillway.  The lake was very choppy on the north side, and on the southern end.  We fished the south side of the causeway but got skunked, and only saw 2 perch caught.  At Mosquito Creek we ended up getting about 11 crappie, perch, and a smallmouth bass.  Everything on live minnows under a bobber.  There were tons of other people out also.

Saturday we fished Neshannock Creek.  We only got one rainbow, and only saw one other fish caught.  The water was a little low and clear.  There were a few caddis hatching, midges, and some small mayfly of some sort.

Today I ended up going to a different stream.  Caught 3, and missed many more including a 20in. bow.  Didn't see many bugs, but there were some rises here and there.  Tried dries but didn't get anything.  Tried nymphs and only hooked one.  Then switched to a small egg and caught a few.  Also had many fish chase streamers but didn't take the fly.

Mosquito Lake 3/25/12

Today we went back out fishing at Mosquito Lake.  The fishing was very slow, but there were still a good amount of people.  We caught 1 bass, a warmouth, a bluegill, had a bullhead on, and my brother caught a 25in northern pike.  Everything was caught on live minnows.