I may have caught a state record fallfish

[Peyton]

I've looked everywhere but can't find a state record for fallfish, yet they are native and abundant. I have caught a couple of 15"+ ones from pigeon creek and just caught a 12" one that is fat and about 8 ounces. I am working on the paperwork and will report back with what happens. I would have gotten the 16" one certified, but the spot I caught it was on the edge of the public land, and didn't want to risk it. I sometimes see a 20" one in that creek too, but it turns down every fly I throw at it, even lures don't work in that stretch.

 

[BruceC2C]

Congrats on your catch.
Fallfish, Bluegill & Whitefish.
....all same catagory...
Frowned upon by many , but
ALWAYS eager to eat with VERY robust energy to the net.
They r splendid to me & saved many a slow day.

 

[Peyton]

Congrats on your catch.
Fallfish, Bluegill & Whitefish.
....all same catagory...
Frowned upon by many , but
ALWAYS eager to eat with VERY robust energy to the net.
They r splendid to me & saved many a slow day.

I go out with the intention of catching fallfish, they are so much more aggressive than trout and fight better than stockers. Also great when it's not trout season. Here is my 16” pb Fallfish

 

[tomgamber]

KETTLE CREEK BELOW THE DAM HAS SOME FALL FISH THAT MAKE THAT LOOK LIKE BAIT. HAD NO IDEA HOW BIG THEY GET. I HAVE CAUGHT 12-14 INCHERS ON DRY FLIES NEAR THE MOUTH OF THE SINNEMAHONING.

 

[1fish]

Great job, especially if it's your target species. I suspect a 20 incher is in your near future.

 

[redietz]

Unless nobody thinks to submit them, I would be very surprised if the record is anything under 18".

I enjoy fishing for them, and always make time to specifically target them once or twice a year.

 

[wbranch]

My buddy caught this monster.

 

[krayfish2]

I was wondering if Matt would chime in about the trophy fallfish of the Delaware. I've seen some that appeared to be 20+ but we never measured them. Here's a beauty in full spawning regalia 🤣. Majestic

 

[moon1284]

The nys record is about 3.5 lbs. I've got them up to around 17 or 18 inches. I do not target them and cannot stand catching them...

 

[wbranch]

I was wondering if Matt would chime in about the trophy fallfish of the Delaware. I've seen some that appeared to be 20+ but we never measured them. Here's a beauty in full spawning regalia 🤣. Majestic View attachment 1641224544

While we have caught many 12" - 14" Fallfish (chubs) on the main stem I can not ever recall catching one on the entire WB. That is likely because the water is consistently too cold in the WB, even in the summer, to allow them to enter the river. In my opinion the lower EB has by far the most 15" - 17" fallfish of any Catskill river. They rise often during a mayfly or caddis event but you can usually differentiate between trout and fallfish rises due to the bubble the latter often expels after eating a surface insect.

 

[wbranch]

I have never seen or caught one that actually measured more than 17". I'm sure they may exist just not in the numbers of the 10" - 15". I have often caught them on streamers while fishing for trout. So they eat pretty much anything a trout eats. I have seen guys banking them and while the guy may not like them it is unethical and I think illegal to do that.

 

[moon1284]

The biggest one I got was on a streamer on the upper east branch, between long flats and the harvard bridge. I've got them on the west branch below balls eddy as well.

Agree the lower east has a lot of them.

 

[Balt Co Wanderer]

I got a mongo creek chub two weeks back on a streamer. It was pulling drag (yes, I took a creek chub to the reel, lol) and was every bit of 20”. I heavily regret not taking a picture, but I thought I had caught the brown of lifetime when I saw the chub flash a bit of gold, so I was a little disappointed when it came up a chub and just unhooked it at my knees.


I had already broken my PB brown two times that day, so it was a day of large fish.

 

[redietz]

I got a mongo creek chub two weeks back on a streamer. It was pulling drag (yes, I took a creek chub to the reel, lol) and was every bit of 20”.


I had already broken my PB brown two times that day, so it was a day of large fish.

I've had days like that., with a mix of large fallfish and large trout, sometimes from the same spot.

Do creek chubs get that big?

 

[Peyton]

I've had days like that., with a mix of large fallfish and large trout, sometimes from the same spot.

Do creek chubs get that big?

my biggest chub was an 11"er under a waterfall

 

[redietz]

my biggest chub was an 11"er under a waterfall

Yeah, according to every source I can find, creek chubs can get up to 12". Any chub larger than that is probably a fallfish, but you never know.

 

[Peyton]

Yeah, according to every source I can find, creek chubs can get up to 12". Any chub larger than that is probably a fallfish, but you never know.

It had the big black line down the side, and far too big of a line for it to be a young fallfish.

 

[Balt Co Wanderer]

I've had days like that., with a mix of large fallfish and large trout, sometimes from the same spot.

Do creek chubs get that big?

Could have been a fall fish, but I’m pretty sure it was a chub. Either way, it far exceeded my expectations one them. There’s this piece of private property with six miles of wild brown trout stream that dumps into an even bigger private brown trout river by me, that is rumored to have dinosaur level chubs.

 

[lycoflyfisher]

Bait Co,

Creek chub do not get that big. Much over 10in would be rare. If you caught a 20in chub it was most likely a fall fish.

 

[redietz]

Could have been a fall fish, but I’m pretty sure it was a chub. Either way, it far exceeded my expectations one them. There’s this piece of private property with six miles of wild brown trout stream that dumps into an even bigger private brown trout river by me, that is rumored to have dinosaur level chubs.

Fall fish are chubs.