N/C PA NIGHT FISHING

[rrt]

From the replies here, it sounds as though night fishing in n/c PA is not as popular as it was during Bashline's era. (The book came out in 1974.) Perhaps it was mainly popular in his area and not so much elsewhere?

In my central PA area, I can no longer night fish some of the larger places I tried when young. My bad knee is just too rickety. The two best small-stream spots: One was destroyed by a new bridge, and the other silted in. I was the only fly-fisherman I am aware of from town who night fished in the 1980s, '90s, and later.

But, there was a cadre of night-fishing bait fishermen who used live crickets they bought from Selphs' (I think). When I was in college and living at home, before I was a total fly-fishing convert, I tried crickets. But, like my father before me, my crickets escaped their cage and were all over the house and around it, chirping incessantly until the fall frosts came. My mother told me sternly that I was not to try that again. The crickets did not work as well as the wet flies I used later when I fished a half-dozen or more nights each summer. Even at 74 I think I'd try it again if I could find a safe place to go with my bad knee, but that is pretty unlikely.

Thank you for the various responses to my question about night fishing in n/c PA.

 

[TimMurphy]

From the replies here, it sounds as though night fishing in n/c PA is not as popular as it was during Bashline's era. (The book came out in 1974.) Perhaps it was mainly popular in his area and not so much elsewhere?

In my central PA area, I can no longer night fish some of the larger places I tried when young. My bad knee is just too rickety. The two best small-stream spots: One was destroyed by a new bridge, and the other silted in. I was the only fly-fisherman I am aware of from town who night fished in the 1980s, '90s, and later.

But, there was a cadre of night-fishing bait fishermen who used live crickets they bought from Selphs' (I think). When I was in college and living at home, before I was a total fly-fishing convert, I tried crickets. But, like my father before me, my crickets escaped their cage and were all over the house and around it, chirping incessantly until the fall frosts came. My mother told me sternly that I was not to try that again. The crickets did not work as well as the wet flies I used later when I fished a half-dozen or more nights each summer. Even at 74 I think I'd try it again if I could find a safe place to go with my bad knee, but that is pretty unlikely.

Thank you for the various responses to my question about night fishing in n/c PA.

Dear rrt,

Your post about fishing with crickets reminds me of when I was in the USAF stationed at Eglin AFB in the Florida Panhandle. I bought a well-used john boat with a buddy. We used to throw it in the back of my truck and head out to fish lakes and ponds.

We always bought crickets at little country bait shops. They would count them out and hand you a paper sack full of crickets. We'd get a container of Georgia Jumper worms and be all set! If you kept the cricket bag firmly folded over you were golden, and the crickets would last all day, chirping contently. But on occasion if you didn't pay attention the bag could be set down in a wet spot in the boat and the bottom would fall out, or the top might open and then the crickets had free range!

The funny thing is crickets really don't like to hop out of a boat, so even with spillage if you went two days in a row there were still crickets to be found in the bottom of the boat if you followed your ears!

Regards,

Tim Murphy

 

[jifigz]

I've night fished for trout about three times. I never caught a trout at night, though. I've actually been meaning to do it this summer with my 6 weight and some big streamers, though. Most of my night fish was reserved for dunking bait for catfish, building a fire, and drinking beer on the shore.

 

[Bamboozle]

Don’t know anything about night fishing for trout, but isn’t it true, you can’t use lights, because of spooking fish?
If so, how the heck do you navigate around?

I use a headlamp at night (and not a red LED) all the time to tie on flies. I've also shine my headlamp directly on the water to see if there are spinners or duns on the surface and even kept it on the water while making a presentation. This is while stationed in a particular pool on a trout stream and not getting skunked. I also use one religiously to move around on the Susquehanna after dark.

When I fished at night and overnight as a kid at Springton Reservoir, there was ALWAYS a two mantle Colman lantern hissing beside us on the bank.

I would THINK no light would more stealthy, but I'm catching fish all the time at night so I don't fret about using lights.

...But, there was a cadre of night-fishing bait fishermen who used live crickets they bought from Selphs' (I think)...

Speaking of crickets...

For a number of years, I had to do all an day meeting in Silver Spring, MD. I used it as an excuse to skip out of my Philly office around 3:00 pm and drive to Carlisle for an overnight so I could fish the Letort in the evening and after dark.

I'd head to Vince's Meadow and while I could still see, I'd catch a few on the usual seasonal offerings. However, by 10:00 pm I was stationed in the Barnyard for a particular reason... There was/is a bright light on the rear of the Carlisle Borough Public Works Garage building which faces the creek.

While the stream doesn't get bathed in light, there would be just enough to create a slight shimmer on the surface that you can see if you are low enough to the water. That shimmer allowed me catch the spot where my all black Letort Cricket landed and I'd watch for a rise.

Even though at the time, fishing after sundown was technically illegal on Limestone Springs and later Heritage Fly Fishing Only waters, I spent MANY a night working that stretch with a Letort Cricket until well after 11:00 pm and I caught some decent fish.

 

[Mike]

Don’t know anything about night fishing for trout, but isn’t it true, you can’t use lights, because of spooking fish?
If so, how the heck do you navigate around?

The other reason for not wanting to turn on a light even though you sometimes must to undo a hopeless tangle, especially if 2-3 flies are involved, is that your eyes and vision get used to the darkness and when you flip on a white light you have to start all over again once you turn it off. Head lamps that have the red light option as well as brightness options for the white light are helpful. The red light isn’t so harsh.

Just to clarify, I fish 2 flies. A friend, former colleague, and fishing pal fishes 3. As for me, when night fly fishing I follow the saying, “know thyself,” and I think 3 flies might lead me straight to a disaster of tangles.

Some things that I have never seen mentioned elsewhere that to me were very instructional when I first started doing this is that the size 4-6, unweighted wet flies ride high in the water column and as a result rarely get stuck on the bottom, even in water with only very slow moving current. In addition, I use a floating line and two long time night anglers with whom I fish use floating and sinking lines, respectively. Retrieves speeds vary, but most of the time they’re about as slow as you can go. If slow isn’t cutting it on a particular night or location, then speeding it up or adding a little jigging bump every so often can make a difference.

 

[6xAdams(Jones)]

The other reason for not wanting to turn on a light even though you sometimes must to undo a hopeless tangle, especially if 2-3 flies are involved, is that your eyes and vision get used to the darkness and when you flip on a white light you have to start all over again once you turn it off. Head lamps that have the red light option as well as brightness options for the white light are helpful. The red light isn’t so harsh. Just to clarify, I fish 2 flies. A friend, former colleague, and fishing pal fishes 3. As for me, when night fly fishing I follow the saying, “know thyself,” and I think 3 flies might lead me straight to a disaster of tangles.

You can also get red filter glasses to wear like the submariners do when the boat is surfaced at night. They wear them when they enter spaces that can't be "rigged for red." Also, one could wear an eye patch like the wooden ship sailors and pirates used to.

 

[DGC]

I've never fished at night for trout. But this Humphreys video was quite fun. He has his own channel with most of his videos.

 

[Wild_Trouter]

The other reason for not wanting to turn on a light even though you sometimes must to undo a hopeless tangle, especially if 2-3 flies are involved, is that your eyes and vision get used to the darkness and when you flip on a white light you have to start all over again once you turn it off. Head lamps that have the red light option as well as brightness options for the white light are helpful. The red light isn’t so harsh.

Just to clarify, I fish 2 flies. A friend, former colleague, and fishing pal fishes 3. As for me, when night fly fishing I follow the saying, “know thyself,” and I think 3 flies might lead me straight to a disaster of tangles.

Some things that I have never seen mentioned elsewhere that to me were very instructional when I first started doing this is that the size 4-6, unweighted wet flies ride high in the water column and as a result rarely get stuck on the bottom, even in water with only very slow moving current. In addition, I use a floating line and two long time night anglers with whom I fish use floating and sinking lines, respectively. Retrieves speeds vary, but most of the time they’re about as slow as you can go. If slow isn’t cutting it on a particular night or location, then speeding it up or adding a little jigging bump every so often can make a difference.

Spot on Mike. The flies I fish are generally unweighted to VERY light weighted, and push a lot of water on the surface. I found those to be the most effective over trying to fish anything that sinks any appreciable depth. In my experience, my catch rate was always better with the flies that cause a surface commotion over weighted flies being stripped in the water column. Also agree on the red light head lamp. That's what I used. One thing I learned is to know the water you intend to fish intimately well. Your senses sharpen in the dark and you will need to be more reliant on sound and feel then sight.

 

[mossyoakpenn]

As a data point, I fished last night until almost 2300(11pm). I caught 3 trout, two of which took my streamer from the exact spot I shined my headlight on 1 minute prior. Maybe it doesn’t matter as much as Humphreys said it did.

 

[Kevin82]

The light didnt seem to matter in that video with Mr. Humphreys.

 

[Slatyfork]

I’ve tried a handful of times in PA and WV. Never got a strike. Streamers and mice. After an hour of nothing happening, it’s hard for me to stay with it TBH. Maybe I’d be more inclined to stay out if somebody was with me.

I did use to fly-fish for stripers at night on Cape Cod and had some amazing nights with a black gartside gurgler. All the schoolies you wanted up to 26.” Had a Halloween night where the strikes came by the dozen off a jetty. It was a blast.

I am itching to try it again in central PA this summer, but I need to scout some better spots.