Worth723
New member
Hey y’all,
I’m gearing up for my annual trek to central PA from central VA to treat myself to a long four days on the water chasing wild trout. I’m going to venture up to Penns Creek from Huntingdon county one of the days to get my taste of a piece of water many of you know so well.
Please take a look below at my game plan for Penns Creek and let me know if I’m on the right path. Thanks in advance for any input.
1) When I’ll be in central PA? Late April. I’ll have my eye closely on the gauges and the weather.
2) When I’ll hit Penns? A weekday, likely just before the weekend.
3) What’s my style of attack? I’m thinking of nymphing primarily with my 10’ 2wt. but I will have a few other sticks waiting in the wings should I be blessed with good flows, temps and surface activity, or conversely a streamer rod if she’s looking to be on the high side.
Back to the nymphing. I’m a strong wader and very confident when in the water, but I never take it for granted. I’ve read of the pushy currents on this water so I’ll be mindful of the slick rocky substrate and aggressive currents. I think I’ll grab a wading staff. Better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it right?
Also, I’ve historically done very well in central PA with Walt’s worms and variants, particularly a #18 walts with a silver bead and a purple collar. Also, pheasant tail jig variations, perdigons and one of my favorites, a peeping (peeking) caddis in a #14. I tie this essentially as a regular walts but with a piece of small green ultra chenille coming out of the tail with a burned tip to imitate caddis.
Are there crawfish in this system? I also love little jig buggers and may try working those if I’m feeling frisky.
4) Which stretch do I have my eye on? Well, I’m looking for good riffles and pocket water on maps and the catch and release section from Cherry Run up to Po Paddy look to have plenty of that to offer. I’ll do some walking and get in when it looks juicy, bounce around.
Whats an ideal fishable flow range? My research tells me somewhere between 300-600. Thoughts?
All in all, I’m going to work my tail off and fish sun up to nearly dark and hope to have weather and flows on my side. I’ll take care of the rest and scratch a big want off my list, a day on beautiful Penns Creek.
I’m gearing up for my annual trek to central PA from central VA to treat myself to a long four days on the water chasing wild trout. I’m going to venture up to Penns Creek from Huntingdon county one of the days to get my taste of a piece of water many of you know so well.
Please take a look below at my game plan for Penns Creek and let me know if I’m on the right path. Thanks in advance for any input.
1) When I’ll be in central PA? Late April. I’ll have my eye closely on the gauges and the weather.
2) When I’ll hit Penns? A weekday, likely just before the weekend.
3) What’s my style of attack? I’m thinking of nymphing primarily with my 10’ 2wt. but I will have a few other sticks waiting in the wings should I be blessed with good flows, temps and surface activity, or conversely a streamer rod if she’s looking to be on the high side.
Back to the nymphing. I’m a strong wader and very confident when in the water, but I never take it for granted. I’ve read of the pushy currents on this water so I’ll be mindful of the slick rocky substrate and aggressive currents. I think I’ll grab a wading staff. Better to have it and not need it then to need it and not have it right?
Also, I’ve historically done very well in central PA with Walt’s worms and variants, particularly a #18 walts with a silver bead and a purple collar. Also, pheasant tail jig variations, perdigons and one of my favorites, a peeping (peeking) caddis in a #14. I tie this essentially as a regular walts but with a piece of small green ultra chenille coming out of the tail with a burned tip to imitate caddis.
Are there crawfish in this system? I also love little jig buggers and may try working those if I’m feeling frisky.
4) Which stretch do I have my eye on? Well, I’m looking for good riffles and pocket water on maps and the catch and release section from Cherry Run up to Po Paddy look to have plenty of that to offer. I’ll do some walking and get in when it looks juicy, bounce around.
Whats an ideal fishable flow range? My research tells me somewhere between 300-600. Thoughts?
All in all, I’m going to work my tail off and fish sun up to nearly dark and hope to have weather and flows on my side. I’ll take care of the rest and scratch a big want off my list, a day on beautiful Penns Creek.
