Lackawaxen in Early May

[Larry]

Hi,
I'll be staying in Hawley, PA for the whole first week of May. I have never fished the Lackawaxen and know nothing about what to expect and may be coming off at that time of year. I'll be fishing by myself as no one else fishes ,in fact I believe I'll be the only male in our small group of seniors. I'm 79 but, still get around pretty well, but I understand the Lackawaxen is pretty tough wading for anyone. Other then the Delaware river hatch chart to go on, what maybe happening then. I'd appreciate any local info you might pass on or provide so i might have a less frustrating time and have at least a 50% chance, if even that high, of catching anything. Or other streams in the area that I might be able to fish. Most of my time is spent fly fishing the limestoners in the Lehigh Valley, primarily the LL FF only stretch, without getting underfoot of all the bait fishers there. I get a lot of dirty looks as I prefer the lower part of that water. I keep telling them it's not the person that's restricted, it's the method not the man. But they refuse to understand. Thanks in advance. Larry

 

[henrydavid]

Hi,
I'll be staying in Hawley, PA for the whole first week of May. I have never fished the Lackawaxen and know nothing about what to expect and may be coming off at that time of year. I'll be fishing by myself as no one else fishes ,in fact I believe I'll be the only male in our small group of seniors. I'm 79 but, still get around pretty well, but I understand the Lackawaxen is pretty tough wading for anyone. Other then the Delaware river hatch chart to go on, what maybe happening then. I'd appreciate any local info you might pass on or provide so i might have a less frustrating time and have at least a 50% chance, if even that high, of catching anything. Or other streams in the area that I might be able to fish. Most of my time is spent fly fishing the limestoners in the Lehigh Valley, primarily the LL FF only stretch, without getting underfoot of all the bait fishers there. I get a lot of dirty looks as I prefer the lower part of that water. I keep telling them it's not the person that's restricted, it's the method not the man. But they refuse to understand. Thanks in advance. Larry

The weather and water temps will dictate what to look for in early May. My experience is more towards the end of May when hatches are going strong. You'll of course want to keep track of the water releases if you will be fishing below the dam.

 

[sixfootfenwick]

Another thing you can do is take a heavier rod, toss streamers and poppers for smallmouth.
The Lax river has great smallmouth fishing.

 

[DomR]

The river right in Hawley is starting to be bigger water with a good amount of depth as well, so be careful. I almost bought it there many years ago, I was 15 and wading stupidly where I shouldn't have. 1st week of May you might catch the last of the Hendricksons. There used to be pretty good caddis hatches there as well. Streamers always worked too.

If you have time and access to a car you can venture up route 6 past Honesdale, the river gets smaller there and should be more wade friendly. Below Prompton dam down into Honesdale used to fish well. You might also want to check out Dyberry creek, it's in the vicinity.

 

[Drifly]

Unfortunately Brookfield does not do a very good job managing water in this river down below Hawley, which is some of the nicest water in the whole system. I live about 20 minutes away. They flow 1k+ daily starting around 8AM and no telling when they turn it down. These water fluctuation’s always seem to have the fish and bugs in some kind of transition. I’d be keeping an eye on the USGS gauge in Rowland. I will say this though when you do hit it right this river has hatches that almost equal the Delaware system.

 

[Larry]

THANKS for your info, tips and locations. I have a PFD, staff and stubbed boots. But I still won't get into heavy flows. I'll be going upstream. Larry

 

[tjsingle]

Unfortunately Brookfield does not do a very good job managing water in this river down below Hawley, which is some of the nicest water in the whole system. I live about 20 minutes away. They flow 1k+ daily starting around 8AM and no telling when they turn it down. These water fluctuation’s always seem to have the fish and bugs in some kind of transition. I’d be keeping an eye on the USGS gauge in Rowland. I will say this though when you do hit it right this river has hatches that almost equal the Delaware system.

I haven't fished Lackawaxen, but I have fished downstream of many Brookfield dams. Definitely keep an eye on the gauge, and the release schedule (see link below). Obviously these things can change rapidly, so be careful when fishing below power generation facilities.

https://www.safewaters.com/facility/wallenpaupack

I did see on the page here that there is a restriction on generation for angler safety on the link I just posted.

 

[leonidjbjv]

I'm 79 but, still get around pretty well, but I understand the Lackawaxen is pretty tough wading for anyone.

You can also try Dyberry or Wallenpaupack. These are nearby and more senior-friendly. Take care!