Spring Creek Late Oct/Early Nov Advice

H

hunkerdown

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Western PA
My wife and I are still very new to FF, and we just reserved a house near Spring Creek in Centre County for a few days the last week of October. We had the pleasure of fishing Spring Creek one day in the early fall of 2023 with an excellent guide, but regrettably we have forgotten anything specific about patterns and presentation. We are hoping to spend time on the stream without a guide this time around (although we have not ruled out a guide as an option). As you might imagine, I would like my wife to have as good of an experience as possible. Would you be willing to share any general advice regarding patterns, sizes, etc. to increase our chances in late October? I suppose that I also should ask for confirmation that it is not a foolish idea to spend time on Spring Creek in late October. Thanks very much.
 
Fishing late October should put you just before fall brown trout spawning, which generally happens in November. If you're wading, you'll obviously want to watch for any signs of active spawning (redds, paired up fish, etc.). Flows will generally be on the low side (it's 62 CFS at Axemann right now), so you'll be able to cover a lot more water. On the flip side, low and clear also means the fish can see you as well, so you'll have to plan your moves. As far as flies go, pre-spawn fish may be open to chasing streamers or other larger offerings as they look to up their caloric intake prior to spawning. It's hard to beat a simple Walt's Worm in size 14-18, as it imitates a lot of different food sources in Spring Creek. Other than that, as far as finding fish, your best bet will be in the riffles, runs. and tailouts. Work the seams as well and you'll likely have good success.
 
As said, you're right in the prespawn/spawn time of year on this stream--AKA, when fish in the system are setting their bedroom with the hopes of passing their genetics on and successfully reproducing.

Honestly, I wouldn't fish a place like Spring Crick this time of year as successful spawning means more to me than really catching any fish. With that being said, if you must fish, be very careful about wading, ideally, you don't wade at all, and if you do, be sure to keep an eye out for redds and stay the heck away from them. Do your research on what a redd is and how to identify it ahead of time so that you know what to look for.

Also, I'd focus the vast majority of any fishing you do on deep water, which won't really hold spawning fish. The Paradise Stretch would be my focus on this trip as wading isn't allowed and it does have some deep holes that will have fish less focused on the important act of reproducing.

An alternative would be to enjoy the beauty of the area and fish some of the various warmwater ponds or rivers in the area; these won't have spawning fish yet they will have pretty easy fish to catch and probably some nice fall leaves on the trees. I'm thinking places like Colyer Lake, the Juniata River, Whipple Dam, and Bald Eagle Lake--the Bald Eagle Spillway is also a good area to throw largeish streamers and you may hook into something there that's better than even the best non-spawning trout that you'll find.

Here's a link to a good article regarding the brown trout spawn on Spring Creek that I'd highly consider reading before making any plans:

To Fish Or Not To Fish

FlyFisher's Paradise - State College premier flyfishing shop. Flytying, supplies, guide services.
www.flyfishersparadise.com www.flyfishersparadise.com
 
As mentioned above, if the water is presumably low I would suggest longer/thinner leaders, small flies and a low profile. Tiny pheasant tails or midge patterns might be a good starting point. Caddis larva do pretty well in that stream year round. Also mentioned above, riffles will likely produce but fish can be in any spot in that stream so don’t overlook anything fishy.
 
Glo Bugs size 14-16 in Egg, Apricot Delight, Pink Lady and Oregon Cheese colors under an indicator or dropper are deadly this time of year- especially on Spring Creek.
 
Since you are already considering a guide, maybe find a guide that does float trips so you don't have to worry about messing up spawning. Personally I would find a guide to take you down juniata river for smallmouth, never fished it, but would assume you would have a shot at some big smallies fattening up for winter
 
Fishing spring creek at the end of Oct. is fine. Just watch out. Besides there are too many fish in there anyway. The challenge will be the low clear water and when the vegetation starts to break free. You can never do poorly with a waits worm mentioned above or cress bugs/scuds. You might catch the end of the BWOs. Olive nymphs are another good choice for Spring Creek.
 
Honestly, what a terrific resource you have created here, particularly for a beginner. I sincerely appreciate the responses describing tactics and patterns, and I also appreciate and welcome the encouragement to learn more about the bigger picture involving conservation and stewardship of this resource. If there are other suggestions and recommendations, please keep them coming. I know that I will benefit from the advice shared here, and I trust that others will, too.
 
I met Joe Humphreys about 12 years ago and I asked him for some pointers on Spring. He told me that if you aren't catching anything on Spring to use cressbug imitations, and if you still aren't catching anything with cress bugs you have the weight wrong.

His advice has served me well.

I personally only fish downstream from Fishermen's Paradise from usually July through February unless it gets a good shot of water. Upstream from that tends to turn into frog water in my opinion.
 
My advice, even if the water is low and clear, is to toss a streamer. Fish are often getting rather aggressive leading up to the spawn, and they will likely chase a streamer out of aggression. Years ago, I cleaned up on Spring Creek in the fall while throwing a white woolly bugger. Fish were on it nearly everywhere and anywhere. Yes, I missed a lot of fish, but the near constant bites kept it exciting.

One more positive, if you're a newbie and the fish are aggressive, you really can't fish it wrong. As long as it is in the water and moving, whether done purposefully or accidentally, a fish may grab it.
 
jifigz said:
My advice, even if the water is low and clear, is to toss a streamer. Fish are often getting rather aggressive leading up to the spawn, and they will likely chase a streamer out of aggression. Years ago, I cleaned up on Spring Creek in the fall while throwing a white woolly bugger. Fish were on it nearly everywhere and anywhere. Yes, I missed a lot of fish, but the near constant bites kept it exciting.

One more positive, if you're a newbie and the fish are aggressive, you really can't fish it wrong. As long as it is in the water and moving, whether done purposefully or accidentally, a fish may grab it.
Click to expand...
Make sure you try the Golden Retriever I put you on to. Best time of the year to fish that fly. Browns inhale it in the Fall.
 
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