Fly fishing between Pittsburgh and Breezewood

[mikeg126]

At the end of July I’ll be moving my son to Pittsburgh for law school. I’m coming from Northern VA taking I70 and I76. On the way back I was hoping to fish half a day before I drive back. I could fish the Savage but since this will be a regular trip for the next 3 years I wanted to fish new water. I’d like to stay within 30-40 minutes from I76 or I70. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

[Prospector]

The late July timeframe might not be ideal for these streams but probably some solid choices in that region are Yough, Laurel Hill, Yellow Creek near Bedford, Meadow Run.

 

[silverfox]

At the end of July I’ll be moving my son to Pittsburgh for law school. I’m coming from Northern VA taking I70 and I76. On the way back I was hoping to fish half a day before I drive back. I could fish the Savage but since this will be a regular trip for the next 3 years I wanted to fish new water. I’d like to stay within 30-40 minutes from I76 or I70. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

You'll drive right through Bedford. We're about halfway between Pittsburgh and NOVA and a lot of people stop here making that trip. The Bedford Springs Resort is phenomenal for accommodations and can set you up with a local fly fishing guide . I'd also recommend the Golden Eagle Inn right in town. The owners are great, the rooms are nice, and the food is very good.

As you're leaving VA you've got Beaver Creek in MD which is a neat little limestoner. As Prospector mentioned, Yellow Creek is our best limestoner. Bob's Creek near Pavia (25 min north of Bedford) is a great freestoner with a lot of wild brown trout. There are a few other lessor-known spots in the area. A little west of Bedford on the Allegheny front are some nice wild brook trout streams. Further west on your way to the burgh you've got the Laurel ridge streams like Laurel Hill Creek and Loyalhanna on the other side. There's plenty of good fishing between Pittsburgh and Bedford right on your route.

If you're not familiar with it, check out the PFBC interactive stream map:

ArcGIS Web Application

pfbc.maps.arcgis.com

 

[Ryan Hall]

Yellow creek outside of Bedford, and stop at Jean Bonet.

 

[Steeltrap]

Limestone creeks remain much cooler in the summer or at hot strings of weather. The Loyalhanna creek today (6\17\22) is already at 70 degrees. The Loyalhanna is a great place to fish in early spring or late fall when the temps cool down, I the hot summer you can watch the big stocked fish struggle to survive and have an interest in just about nothing....real or fly.

 

[silverfox]

Limestone creeks remain much cooler in the summer or at hot strings of weather. The Loyalhanna creek today (6\17\22) is already at 70 degrees. The Loyalhanna is a great place to fish in early spring or late fall when the temps cool down, I the hot summer you can watch the big stocked fish struggle to survive and have an interest in just about nothing....real or fly.

Good point. This time of year, Yellow creek or other spring creeks in the area or mountain brook trout streams as long as the temps aren't too high are about the only options for trout. Other times of year though, my recommendations stand.

North Branch Potomac and Savage tailwaters aren't terribly far off the route if it's 68 instead of 76. Those stay plenty cold all year.

 

[mikeg126]

Hey guys thanks for the recommendations. I did some more research and I think I’ll go to Yellow Creek this Monday to check it out. It’s much closer than I thought (2:15 hours) from home so I can easily do a day trip and also make a stop on my trips to Pitt.

 

[mikeg126]

A quick update... I fished YC yesterday at the CRFFO section. Some of the locals commented on how crowded the parking lot was. Maybe 8 cars by the time I got there at 8:15. The river was wide open as far as I could tell. It looked like a few sulphers were hatching but nothing rising. I nymphed the entire day and had a couple of nice rainbows and browns. I started just below the parking area but later in the morning headed more upstream. It was pretty sunny so by the time I got to the upper half the sun was well on top of the river and I think the fish were slowing down and moving into the shaded areas. I'll probably head back this weekend with my son.

Thanks again for the recommendation.