esocidae
New member
- Joined
- Jun 30, 2010
- Messages
- 17
Hello all. In 2012 I bought a 46 acre farm in Tyler county, WV, and created a wild brown trout stream on my property and adjoining neighboring properties. It is located two counties south of Greene county, Pa. I have studied trout and their habitats personally, and formally. Went to Mansfield University of Pa back when it still had a great fisheries program. I came to fish and love as many wild trout streams in Potter and Tioga counties as I could. I also had the opportunity to electrofish many of those streams as well.
I grew up in Washington county near Mingo park. We had no wild trout streams within 45 minutes and had to rely on stockies or drive to the Laurel Highlands. I came to realize even before my time at Mansfield that even by glancing at a stream, one can soon determine the limiting factor or factors of a stream for supporting a naturally reproducing trout population, whether it be siltation, thermal pollution, or lack of habitat, etc.
So the stream (Elk Fork creek) is in the middle Ohio river drainage. It begins on the divide of where native brook trout historically occurred in the streams draining to the east, as Elk fork drains to the west on its way to the Ohio. The stream is about 12 miles long and runs through forested bottom land. I live about 4 miles downstream of the headwaters, which begin as two springs, accompanied by a third larger spring and one small spring creek about 2 feet wide. The water quality is excellent, and alkaline, with a pH of 8.25 on my property. This county has never been mined for coal, so no AMD, but there are natural oil seeps in the stream bottom, which is neat to see bubbling up to the surface when the water table gets high and displaces it.
I took parameters for two years including pH, temperature and D.O.
The stream has some amazing substrate for its bottom. Few flat rocks and mostly cobble ranging in diameter from a pencil eraser to a golf ball. The stream on my property is about 7-20 ft wide, and runs under a white pine forest. After 2 years of monitoring, I noted that even on 90 degree days that last from June to September here, It was never once above 70, and usually around 66, at 2 p.m.
The first year, in October 2013, I stocked my pond and stream with rainbows from a local hatchery (Rainbowhead Farms, Clarksburg, WV). The rainbows did well in the stream, and most left by April. Its almost impossible to find a farm that raises browns in this state.
In 2014, I built a 37 gallon livewell out of a cooler that I kept in the back of my truck. I used this to transport wild browns home to Elk Fork over the spring and summer. In the fall, I bought fingerlings and adult browns from Zett's fish farm near Snowshoe in Centre county.
That year, there were redds all over by mid November. I counted six on my property. The next spring, I began to hear rumors from down the hollow that people were catching trout, big and small ones.
I should have mentioned that I built an elevated water jack within the boundaries of our DNR laws (less than 12" of drop in the water level). It is the largest hole on my property, at about 5 feet deep. This stream just screamed trout to me once I first saw it. It reminds me of streams in the northern half of Potter county. Not a lot of gradient, but tons of holes and great cover. It looks like a miniature Oswayo.
Long story short, I haven't stocked any trout in the past 6 years, and there are still brown trout here. I have one in the jack dam as of today that's about 18-20" and every bit of 3 lbs. There are green and slate drakes here along with a myriad of other terrestrials, great hatches, and many species of cyprinids. I've seen some small centrarchids here and there like green sunfish, rock bass and little smallmouths. Probably the most unique is the run of Ohio lampreys every spring going to the absolute headwaters to spawn. I'll see 30 of them at a time like salmon running in Alaska.
I also have a small pond (1/3 acre) right next to the stream that is dug into the water table, and has 2 springs that feed it. It never gets above 70 F (after 8 years of monitoring). I have had rainbows and brookies in there that live year round, but rainbows do the best. I brought some wild rainbows home in the livewell and they did great in there too. The rainbows seem to live for about three or four years in the pond. I installed aeration in the bottom of the pond which I generate via an air compressor. In the summer, I only run it at night so as no to deplete the D.O. by pumping hot air into the bottom of the pond.
One thing that I learned as I got older is that it isn't about elevation. there are native brook trout in the Eastern panhandle of WV where the elevation is less than 1000'. Just like there are native brookies in Lancaster county in Pa. Its all about geology. What I find so interesting here is the limestone influence. There is year round aquatic vegetation in the bigger springs that feed it and in the stream itself. Don't go imagining a little LeTort...lol. But its not bad for WV. I have some pics on my phone if anyone is interested. Writing this from my laptop and my pics are on my phone.
I find this all interesting because WV doesn't even try to manage any waterways west of 79 for trout. I realize they aren't traditional, but there is 10 fold better habitat for trout in these streams than the 75 rivers and streams they stock and manage statewide for tourism. Anyone ever heard of our gold rush stocking events? LOL.
Its like in Pa. The nicest and coldest trout stream in Allegheny county is completely ignored by the state because of AMD issues from the past. This would be Peter's creek, and Piney Fork creeks in South Park and Jefferson Hills twps. Its been stocked privately and managed locally as catch and release since 1997. I grew up a few miles from there near Finleyville. There are rainbows year round in that stream because of the deep well mine discharges. That stream runs cold. Cold like a Potter county stream in August. Never above 65 F for its size.
I grew up in Washington county near Mingo park. We had no wild trout streams within 45 minutes and had to rely on stockies or drive to the Laurel Highlands. I came to realize even before my time at Mansfield that even by glancing at a stream, one can soon determine the limiting factor or factors of a stream for supporting a naturally reproducing trout population, whether it be siltation, thermal pollution, or lack of habitat, etc.
So the stream (Elk Fork creek) is in the middle Ohio river drainage. It begins on the divide of where native brook trout historically occurred in the streams draining to the east, as Elk fork drains to the west on its way to the Ohio. The stream is about 12 miles long and runs through forested bottom land. I live about 4 miles downstream of the headwaters, which begin as two springs, accompanied by a third larger spring and one small spring creek about 2 feet wide. The water quality is excellent, and alkaline, with a pH of 8.25 on my property. This county has never been mined for coal, so no AMD, but there are natural oil seeps in the stream bottom, which is neat to see bubbling up to the surface when the water table gets high and displaces it.
I took parameters for two years including pH, temperature and D.O.
The stream has some amazing substrate for its bottom. Few flat rocks and mostly cobble ranging in diameter from a pencil eraser to a golf ball. The stream on my property is about 7-20 ft wide, and runs under a white pine forest. After 2 years of monitoring, I noted that even on 90 degree days that last from June to September here, It was never once above 70, and usually around 66, at 2 p.m.
The first year, in October 2013, I stocked my pond and stream with rainbows from a local hatchery (Rainbowhead Farms, Clarksburg, WV). The rainbows did well in the stream, and most left by April. Its almost impossible to find a farm that raises browns in this state.
In 2014, I built a 37 gallon livewell out of a cooler that I kept in the back of my truck. I used this to transport wild browns home to Elk Fork over the spring and summer. In the fall, I bought fingerlings and adult browns from Zett's fish farm near Snowshoe in Centre county.
That year, there were redds all over by mid November. I counted six on my property. The next spring, I began to hear rumors from down the hollow that people were catching trout, big and small ones.
I should have mentioned that I built an elevated water jack within the boundaries of our DNR laws (less than 12" of drop in the water level). It is the largest hole on my property, at about 5 feet deep. This stream just screamed trout to me once I first saw it. It reminds me of streams in the northern half of Potter county. Not a lot of gradient, but tons of holes and great cover. It looks like a miniature Oswayo.
Long story short, I haven't stocked any trout in the past 6 years, and there are still brown trout here. I have one in the jack dam as of today that's about 18-20" and every bit of 3 lbs. There are green and slate drakes here along with a myriad of other terrestrials, great hatches, and many species of cyprinids. I've seen some small centrarchids here and there like green sunfish, rock bass and little smallmouths. Probably the most unique is the run of Ohio lampreys every spring going to the absolute headwaters to spawn. I'll see 30 of them at a time like salmon running in Alaska.
I also have a small pond (1/3 acre) right next to the stream that is dug into the water table, and has 2 springs that feed it. It never gets above 70 F (after 8 years of monitoring). I have had rainbows and brookies in there that live year round, but rainbows do the best. I brought some wild rainbows home in the livewell and they did great in there too. The rainbows seem to live for about three or four years in the pond. I installed aeration in the bottom of the pond which I generate via an air compressor. In the summer, I only run it at night so as no to deplete the D.O. by pumping hot air into the bottom of the pond.
One thing that I learned as I got older is that it isn't about elevation. there are native brook trout in the Eastern panhandle of WV where the elevation is less than 1000'. Just like there are native brookies in Lancaster county in Pa. Its all about geology. What I find so interesting here is the limestone influence. There is year round aquatic vegetation in the bigger springs that feed it and in the stream itself. Don't go imagining a little LeTort...lol. But its not bad for WV. I have some pics on my phone if anyone is interested. Writing this from my laptop and my pics are on my phone.
I find this all interesting because WV doesn't even try to manage any waterways west of 79 for trout. I realize they aren't traditional, but there is 10 fold better habitat for trout in these streams than the 75 rivers and streams they stock and manage statewide for tourism. Anyone ever heard of our gold rush stocking events? LOL.
Its like in Pa. The nicest and coldest trout stream in Allegheny county is completely ignored by the state because of AMD issues from the past. This would be Peter's creek, and Piney Fork creeks in South Park and Jefferson Hills twps. Its been stocked privately and managed locally as catch and release since 1997. I grew up a few miles from there near Finleyville. There are rainbows year round in that stream because of the deep well mine discharges. That stream runs cold. Cold like a Potter county stream in August. Never above 65 F for its size.
