Rapid Run Union County

[scottrum]

I used to fish this stream many moon's ago. Is the water above sand bridge state park all wild trout water? I see they don't stock this section anymore. Anyone fish within the last few years? Looking for more small stream wild trout fishing.

Thanks.

 

[lycoflyfisher]

I believe they stopped stocking this section due to the wild trout population. I haven't fished it for a few years, I believe the section below RB Winter is now Class A

 

[Swattie87]

I think the above is correct. I think an expanded section of it is up for Class A consideration IIRC. I fished it a couple Summers ago. Caught a few small Browns, really pretty fish. It was really tough to fish in the stretch I was on...Not quite, but approaching rhodo tunnel status. My impression was it probably held a good head of fish, just very difficult to fish.

 

[Wild_Trouter]

Rapid is just ok. There are several nearby streams that fish very well. Were I you, I'd add a few other streams to your itinerary in case you don't find Rapid to your liking and/or you want to maximize your time sampling several streams on your trip. Honestly though, you have a lot available to you coming from the Enola area without the long drive.

 

[mkile]

I haven't fished above Sand Bridge in years. But last summer I fished from sand bridge south for about a mile or so. The fishing was pretty good, but between the thick sections of Rhodadentrin and tree falls, the fishing can be tough.
My experience has been that the brown trout are more or less taking over. In my last trip, i only caught one brookie and the rest were Browns.

 

[discomidge]

Hi all, thought I'd chime in here, first post. I lived in a cabin on Rapid Run all summer, a bit upstream of Forest Hill, and fished it a ton when I didn't feel like driving somewhere or when everything except Fishing Creek was hot. Rapid Run stayed pretty cool all summer, probably because it's fed from RB Winter. Anyway, I caught lots of small brookies and a few browns. I saw some legit 12+ inch browns now and then, but never landed one, though I did hook one for a sec. The fish were super spooky in general. And, as others have said, I found the fishing really tough. Not much room to swing a rod and tons of deadfall. But, surprisingly fun nonetheless.

 

[discomidge]

Oh - and the hatches on it were pretty good. Big march browns and other mayflies, but I found that about 90 min before sunset these small gold/chartreuse stones would reliably hatch and fishing something close to them was magic. I had some deer hair apple caddis flies that worked well enough.

 

[lycoflyfisher]

The impoundment at rb winter definitely does not help the water Temps in Rapid Run, however it is also small enough that it may not have a significant thermal effect. The only time I fished rapid run, I encountered the same challenge with thick rhododendron. This may be a factor in why the fishery is doing so well. I saw one other angler who had caught a few fish, he was using a fly rod but working a pin minnow downstream and working it through every pocket.

 

[mkile]

You're correct Half way dam isn't helping with water temps in the valley, but if you have ever swam in the lake, you know that it certainly isn't warming up Rapid Run! That is one cold lake!

This stream has such a dense forest canopy and many springs that it doesn't really have a chance to warm up. On really hot days the stream has a haze that fills the stream surface because it so cold.