2023 Hatch Activity - Frustrating to me so far, what about you?

Letort

Letort

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Joined
Dec 14, 2008
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Over the past week, I have had the opportunity to be out 4x, ranging from NE PA, SC PA and to a mountain brookie stream in Shenandoah Valley, VA. So a linear stretch of about 300 miles. Streams ranged from spring creeks, freestone and mountain. Water temps ranged from 57-61* and most of the streams were slightly elevated from normal (almost all perfect for fishing) and all had good clarity.

While I caught fish almost everywhere, they seemed to be holding deep with light takes. When I did observe a hatch, I saw few rises and all the hatches I saw were light and sporadic. Sulfur hatch in SC PA was thin, March Browns and Hendrickson’s in NE PA were sporadic. Most consistent was using #12 March Brown in VA - nothing was coming off, but the brookies slammed it anyway. Most consistent was nymphing, even swinging wet flies didn’t produce consistently.

So, am I just missing the most prolific hatches or is something off this year? For those of you that try to time the hatch activity, what are you finding?
 
It seems to me, after also talking with others that it looks like there is a delay on some of the hatches. Spring has been pretty cold for longer it seems this year with some higher water to. From what you have mentioned the fish are not looking up just yet. Just my opinion. Tight lines !
 
Streamhawk said:
It seems to me, after also talking with others that it looks like there is a delay on some of the hatches. Spring has been pretty cold for longer it seems this year with some higher water to. From what you have mentioned the fish are not looking up just yet. Just my opinion. Tight lines !
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The grannoms and sulphurs started very early here in central PA.

Bright clear weather is not good for hatches. Cloudy days are much better. A little off and on drizzle is best.
 
Letort said:
Over the past week, I have had the opportunity to be out 4x, ranging from NE PA, SC PA and to a mountain brookie stream in Shenandoah Valley, VA. So a linear stretch of about 300 miles. Streams ranged from spring creeks, freestone and mountain. Water temps ranged from 57-61* and most of the streams were slightly elevated from normal (almost all perfect for fishing) and all had good clarity.

While I caught fish almost everywhere, they seemed to be holding deep with light takes. When I did observe a hatch, I saw few rises and all the hatches I saw were light and sporadic. Sulfur hatch in SC PA was thin, March Browns and Hendrickson’s in NE PA were sporadic. Most consistent was using #12 March Brown in VA - nothing was coming off, but the brookies slammed it anyway. Most consistent was nymphing, even swinging wet flies didn’t produce consistently.

So, am I just missing the most prolific hatches or is something off this year? For those of you that try to time the hatch activity, what are you finding?
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Dear Letort,

Thirty years ago hatches were pretty reliable. BWO's were mid to late March arrivals. Hendrickson's in the Poconos and PA Wilds usually started around April 15th and lasted a week or so. They were about 2 weeks later on the Upper Delaware River. They hatched starting around 1:00 PM even on sunny days. Rainy or snowy days didn't bring more bugs, they just made the flies stay on the water until their wings dried out enough to fly off and look for a mate. It appeared that there were more flies, but I fished tremendous hatches on the Lehigh under bright bluebird skies in mid-afternoon.

This weekend typically would be the start of March Browns. The bigger Rotunda Sulphur's would start a little before the MB's, but they were a short-lived hatch on most streams. Dorothea Sulphur's were later in May. When I attended PSU in the late 1970's-early 1980's I don't think I ever saw more than a handful of Sulphur's, but tan caddis littered Spring Creek daily at 10:00 AM until school ended for the Summer before Memorial Day.

The timing has definitely changed, in some cases by several weeks and even a month. Not only that, but the hatches have moved until later in the day in a lot of cases in my experience. Ten years ago, I fished a good Sulphur hatch on the Conodoguinet right below Letort Falls on April 4th. I actually went out to toss Rapalas for smallmouth but when the fish started jumping, I went back and got a fly rod and caught a couple of dozen small brown trout that looked exactly like miniature Letort brown trout, because they were!

I pretty much have given up on dry fly fishing to hatches. I still carry all the flies, but actually don't enjoy waiting until 30 minutes before dark to fish a hatch. Once everything is leafed out fully, I get my dry fly fishing done tossing ants and beetles and crickets to likely lairs. I miss fishing hatches and maybe once I retire, I'll have the time to spend chasing them again.

Regards,

Tim Murphy :)
 
Too early to tell. I fished a good, but relatively short, Hendrickson hatch on Penns in early April. A week later I saw relatively good Hendrickson activity on two NCPA small streams, though the small stream fish were much more hesitant to rise than the Penns fish.

Haven’t seen Sulphurs yet, but I haven’t been out in places where I’d expect to see them yet either.

Hatches definitely were early, but then we had that cool, rainy week in early May that may have set things back closer to normal? I dunno. I plan to get out and look for some Sulphurs over the next couple weeks.
 
Sulphurs are out in Mifflin County but I can't say the fish have really cared or keyed in on them. Same is true with the Tan Caddis/sedge.

Fish have been willing to eat dries if you're willing to cast them, though....
 
I fished Mossy Creek in VA three evenings this week and sulfurs and cahills were out in good numbers. I covered a lot of water and never saw more than 5 or 6 risers each evening. I managed a few on the dry, but did much better with a sulfur nymph trailing a partridge and orange.
 
Tuesday evening I Fished Spring Creek the sulfur hatch was pretty lackluster. Few risers caught a few fish. It was sunny and calm.



Wednesday I fish Penns, super sunny pretty slow sporadic risers but the water had been high for a week before it and it cool down so the hatching and catching and fishing and rising was not as good as the prior 2 to 3 weeks. I speculate that the cooldown had an effect on that situation with that Highwater. Bruce from Pennscreek Angler mentioned some thing about that cool down, slowed the leaf out and a few weeks ago he had mentioned that the leaves were usually all unfurled by now and they weren’t and he thought that may affect the mayflies because that’s where they go after they hatch



Thursday evening I Fished The, J, and it was great specially, with wet flies. Some dry activity last hour.



Last night fished the J , lotsa Sulphers and water levels good but sporadic risers and wet fishing not nearly as good as Thursday. I think it was gonna be great but left wanting. Got to go to know!

I think we are also faced with that junk that blows off the trees and is all over the water. That can be frustrating at times. Penns Wednesday had a tree that filled the water for several minutes as the wind kicked up.
 
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Decent hatch of sulphurs in the evening on Penns last Saturday. There were lots of March Brown Spinners. We actually caught them mostly on March Browns. Decent numbers coming up, but we didn't see the spinners on the water. My brother fished downstream and saw very little activity. This was following a very bluebird day.
 
Yeah, I fished the "Omaha Beach" pool down from our friend's cabin since there were virtually no rises at the cabin pool. Exactly two rises at the Omaha pool despite flies being abundant. Other than last year when I did pretty well below Poe Paddy, it seems like I have not had many rising fish to cast to. That said, I do not generally fish the big slow pools. It just seems like years ago you had more opportunities to cast to rising fish around 3 PM into the early evening to hatching duns. I also do not really like fishing in the dark anymore. My ability to tie flies on to my leader has really deteriorated as I have aged.
 
Pressure is way up (Penns looked like a war zone this weekend with fish getting pounded in the same prime lies by 50 people every hour), weird dry warm weather for most of winter and now spring with creeks dropping and clearing again this week/weekend, Bruce mentioned the tree/leaf thing and there might be something to that as well. Even the nymph bite seemed pretty off this weekend. Had to work really really hard for a dozen fish and none of em were up top despite a pretty nice cloudy day yesterday.
 
riverwhy said:
Yeah, I fished the "Omaha Beach" pool down from our friend's cabin since there were virtually no rises at the cabin pool. Exactly two rises at the Omaha pool despite flies being abundant. Other than last year when I did pretty well below Poe Paddy, it seems like I have not had many rising fish to cast to. That said, I do not generally fish the big slow pools. It just seems like years ago you had more opportunities to cast to rising fish around 3 PM into the early evening to hatching duns. I also do not really like fishing in the dark anymore. My ability to tie flies on to my leader has really deteriorated as I have aged.
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Which stretch is "Omaha Beach?"

Regarding changing flies late in the evening. You can just use 4x tippet so it's unlikely to break, tie on a fly you like and LEAVE IT ON for the evening.
 
I've had a great season so far.
Started fishing BWO's on Yellow Creek 2nd week of February.

And moved on to Spring Creek a week later.

Then hit great afternoon Grannom and Hendrickson hatches on the big Limestoners

Last week was kinda a transition period with Sulphers, mainly hatching the last 2 hours of daylight.

The weather has been windy a lot this year, blowing lots of debris into the streams last few weeks
But other than that, things have pretty much normal for me
 
troutbert said:
Which stretch is "Omaha Beach?"

Regarding changing flies late in the evening. You can just use 4x tippet so it's unlikely to break, tie on a fly you like and LEAVE IT ON for the evening.
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Oh sorry I meant to say it is at Ingelby.
 
I haven't been out too much. Caught a blockbuster hendrickson hatch in April and did real well on top.

We had a warm late winter, bugs were ahead of schedule, then a cold early spring which likely pushed things back a little. When that happens usually the hatches of the time are spread out some, less intense but cover a longer period. That big rain also probably sent the fish to feed more underneath. I am kinda guessing this week will see a pickup in surface activity.
 
The windshield and front grille of my 4Runner suggest there were plenty of Sulphurs hatching along the big J between Lewistown and Duncannon.
 
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