Looks like 2020 all over again.

[redietz]

ryansheehan wrote:

redietz wrote:
It's not just anglers who are crowding the stream. I was kept out of a spot on Wednesday because there were people swimming in it. Not something I expected in early March.

Can't be the Gunpowder...........

Of course it was. Water temp was 40 degrees.

 

[McSneek]

I fished the Muddy Creek FFO yesterday afternoon for a few hours. Yes it was a beautiful, warm day and stocked waters are closed but...there was no room to park on the lower end. Several guys fishing the Hemlocks which hasn’t been good in years. Drove to the upper end. Bunch of vehicles but room to park. I only saw two guys on the stream. Think everyone else was way down in the middle of the stretch. I had an enjoyable afternoon catching a bunch of nice stocked rainbows with plenty of stream to myself. That being said I do think Covid has more people outside still and I look forward to people being able to spread out more in a few weeks. What surprises me still is how many people you run into during the week nowadays. Doesn’t anyone work Monday to Friday anymore?

 

[larkmark]

Americans no longer work. They have all now joined the leisure class. Let's see how that works after a few years.

 

[Baron]

I still remember the clank of lunch Kettles and the honking of horns as the shifts change at Bethelehem steel. Good Memories.

 

[Mike]

It was reported by a commissioner that license sales are up again over last year’s, but no speculative analysis followed. I would say that the reported increase would be hard to interpret, since there was hardly any ice fishing in much of the state last year and this year was fairly good for ice anglers in Feb and early March. That may have sped up purchases by anglers who would have eventually purchased a license anyway.

 

[Bamboozle]

I was at the Little Lehigh former “Heritage” stretch on Thursday as well, more as an excuse to smoke a cigar and drink a beer than to fish but yes, it was mobbed with the usual suspects (anglers, runners, horseback riders and folks just taking a stroll) that you should have expected with the Covid and after the February snow we had.

I fished for about an hour from the bank, had no problems finding a spot, caught one fish and smoked one cigar. Nobody was a ****, at least to me and I enjoyed being out like everyone else.

As someone who has frequented Section 8 of the Little Lehigh for decades, part of the enjoyment for me more recently is to see anglers festooned out with chest waders and 2000 pound of kit to fish a place like that. I also particularly enjoy the ones who feel compelled to get in the water and wade two feet from the bank to fish the same spots I can hit standing on the far bank.

I always add those encounters to the enjoyment I get from “The Run East” AKA the zoo that is the Little Lehigh.

For me it is close however, I only go as a winter respite when I don’t feel like wading. I have never regarded it serious fishing for any number of self-imposed reasons so I take what I get when I go there and deal with it.

 

[JackM]

When I encounter crowded stream conditions, I consider myself part of the crowd.

 

[gulfgreyhound]

Fellow Tax Payers .GG

 

[gulfgreyhound]

Fellow Tax Payers .GG

 

[CRB]

It is called Cabin Fever and there is nowhere to go.

 

[Mike]

I like when fly anglers crowd the former Heritage Area once the season opens. It keeps the rest of the Class A water for a few stocked trout anglers and me. It is a similar situation in the Tully DH vs the special reg- stocked trout water open to yr around fishing section below and has been for years....crowds in the DH Area all worried about their “personal space” and wide open spaces with plenty of fish below.

 

[wildtrout2]

I believe if gas prices keep going the way they are, that should limit at least some folks from making it to certain destinations. If it hits $4 a gallon by summer, as some say might happen, it'll limit some of my longer excursions.

 

[Bamboozle]

We were there in 2010 to about 2014 so just ask yourself or others did it effect your fishing plans back then...

I still remember filling up in Trout Run on my way to Cedar Run at just under $4.00 over Memorial Day weekend in 2012. While I was pissed, I still had an hour and half to drive and I needed gas...

...so it goes.

 

[barrybarry]

Truly enjoy meeting other anglers on any stream. Got my shot the other day. Talked the ear off of anyone willing to listen. It's been one of those years.

 

[StreamBottom]

larkmark wrote:
Americans no longer work. They have all now joined the leisure class. Let's see how that works after a few years.

Dang it!! I must’ve missed the sign up sheet.

I just avoid fishing on weekends or I go out with the mind set that’ll get highholed by fellow fishermen that are out and about.

Warm water fishing will open up soon and that will provide more options to spread out.

 

[allthingsfishing]

Amen to the warm weather fishing. It always thins out in northeast Ohio. Can't wait.

 

[dc410]

I stopped by the Yellow Breeches one afternoon earlier this week. As one would guess there were a lot of folks out enjoying the mild weather including many anglers at the special regs section. I really didn’t fish much, mostly just took a walk down to Allenberry and back. I did step in at a few spots to fish and didn’t even have a hit. I spent more time flipping rocks and checking out the many varieties of nymphs and grannom cases. One spot where I was wading I spotted a fisher that came charging down the bank on the opposite side and into the water. After a brief struggle the fisher hauled a water snake out of the creek and back up the steep bank. That was pretty cool to see. It seemed like everybody was really enjoying the beautiful afternoon.

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear troutmeister,

Speaking only for myself, it's not just trout streams, but the outdoors in general that are getting too crowded.

I live less than 10 miles from a State Park with a lake. My wife likes to fish, but she doesn't fly fish. In a pre-Covid year we could take the boat up to the park, launch it and fish.

Last year the boat never hit the water. One Summer ride to the three launch spots said no way.

I wade fished it a couple too tree times, but even then it was a hassle.

I have to wonder what these people did pre-Covid, because except for a Holiday weekend, on most weekends it was never the least bit crowded?

If these new outdoors people stick around I reckon it is what it is? But if they all bail when the coast is clear horn is sounded I hope the Fish and Boat Commission makes good use of the do-re-mi that was dropped in their laps?

Regards,

Tim Murphy

 

[ryansheehan]

"No one goes there anymore, it's too crowded"

 

[larkmark]

Went to a DHALO creek yesterday and it was packed. Watched as 5 fishermen in a group walked upstream out of the delay harvest area into regular stocked water ( off limits now), followed by 4 more. Quite a spectacle. The water was clear and you could see the fish easily. Watched as two other guys waded right through the fish that were right in front of them to go look for a spot to fish. I might be giving up fishing just to watch the humorous actions of these people. By the way they all were totally decked out with everything you could imagine including the best gear money can buy. Probably spent their stimulus checks on a new set of waders. I love it when I try to get into a conversation with one of these people and they start lecturing me on the fine points of fly selection and tackle. Welcome to 2021.