SWPA fishing reports

[Acristickid]

From Pittsburgh Tribune Review

• Water conditions at Cross Creek Lake are clearing up. Combined with the low fishing pressure in recent weeks, that should help make it a good time to fish the lake's waters. Bluegill are reportedly pretty active in the deep end of the waters and are continuing to hit on meal worms and small jigs. The lake also is giving off a good number of bass in recent days. According to fishermen, the bass are biting the most on nightcrawlers and shiners. Crappie still are hitting in the area as well.

• Yellow Creek Lake is yielding a variety of fish to anglers fishing its waters. In the later evening hours, fishermen are catching northern pike and catfish. Largemouth bass greater then 16 inches also are being reported in Yellow Creek Lake. Bluegill and yellow perch are being fished out of the lake by anglers.

• Fishermen at Mahoning Creek Lake are catching muskellunge at the Atwood Launch outside of Dayton. Sunfish and yellow perch also are being picked up in the same vicinity.

• Anglers are reporting catches of crappie and bass in Somerset Lake. Channel catfish and common carp also are reportedly biting for fishermen on the lake.

• High Point Lake is becoming a quality spot for fishing largemouth bass. Besides the bass, which are reported to be of good size, anglers also are picking up panfish.

• An American eel reportedly was caught and released by an angler fishing Brush Creek . While it is a rare catch, the American eel does pop up sporadically in western Pennsylvania.

• The fishing in most Washington County waterways has been difficult because of muddy waters resulting from the spurts of heavy rain the area has experienced in recent weeks. Canonsburg Lake is providing anglers with bullhead catfish and the occasional large catfish. The best baits for channel catfish in Canonsburg Lake are chicken livers and dough balls.

• Some nice-sized bluegills are being caught in the deeper waters of Conneaut Lake. Meanwhile, the edges and weed bed areas in the northern part of the lake reportedly are hot spots for anglers hunting smallmouth and largemouth bass.

• Smallmouth bass are hitting on tubes and grubs for fishermen at French Creek. Walleye also are being caught on stick baits and grubs through the quicker currents of the creek.

• Anglers fishing the Allegheny River in Venango County are reporting a lot of floating grass that is making boating difficult. Despite the grass, catches of smallmouth bass and walleye are being reported in the county. Tubes, grubs and stick baits that are weedless are catching the greatest amount of fish.

• Fishing on the Yough River has been slow in recent weeks because of hot weather and low water, but anglers still report catching a few trout using nightcrawlers. Smallmouth bass also are biting for fishermen using minnows and rooster tails.

• Despite the plummeting water levels, the Yough Lake is offering a few walleye, smallmouth bass, perch and catfish to local anglers.

Kevin Lohman is a freelance writer.

 

[Acristickid]

To be fair and balanced here is the angler report from the liberal rag - Pittsburgh Post Gazette-

Lake Erie (Erie County): Walleye and yellow perch remained scattered and good hookups were hit-or-miss. The smallmouth bite continued northeast of North East with flukes and weedless lures at the edge of weed beds.

Conneaut Lake (Crawford County): Anglers tossing weedless lures pulled bass from weed bed edges north of Hotel Conneaut, and large bluegills were found in deep, cool waters throughout the lake. On Aug. 13, Jasmine Sing, 9, of Butler caught her first fish, a bluegill that stole several worms before being hooked.

French Creek (Crawford, Venango counties): Smallmouths, walleye and a few northerns were caught throughout the creek. The bass were deep and went for grubs and tube baits. The walleye were caught in fast water on grubs and stick baits.

Allegheny River (Venango County): On Wednesday in Franklin, wading in about 3 feet and throwing 4-inch fluke baits well below the French Creek confluence, Chuck Bandurski of Bloomfield landed three smallmouths in the 16- to 17-inch range. Anglers evaded floating weeds with tube baits, stick baits and other weedless lures and brought in bass and walleye.

Keystone Lake (Armstrong County): Muskellunge exceeding regulation size and big largemouths were reported at Keystone. Not the state park, but the 850-acre impoundment. With hydrography that ranges from shallow shoreline weed beds to 90-foot depths, two-tiered fishing is possible above and below a thermocline that turns twice a year. The waters are managed by Fish and Boat, motors are restricted to 9.9 horsepower and fishing is courtesy of Reliant Energy, which uses the lake to supply cooling water for Keystone Generating Station in Shelocta.

Yellow Creek Lake (Armstrong County): Largemouths larger than 16 inches were taken shortly before or just after dawn. Bluegills and yellow perch were active throughout the lake, northerns and good-size catfish were caught around dusk.

Mahoning Creek Lake (Armstrong, Indiana, Jefferson counties): Catches of legal muskies were reported, and shore anglers caught sunfish and yellow perch.

Allegheny River (Allegheny County): Long, hot days were no deterrent to catfish off the North Shore. On Wednesday, participants in Venture Outdoors’ free TriAnglers program landed three flatheads (biggest 22½ inches, John Force of the North Side, hot dog) and two channel cats (biggest 22½ inches, Tommy Lippert, North Side, worm), while three smallmouths and one largemouth bass went for live minnow. A few weeks remain to give it a try — the TriAnglers season ends Sept. 28 412-255-0564, www.ventureoutdoors.org.

Lake Somerset (Somerset County): Channel cats, crappies and largemouths were caught, as well as some large carp.

Youghiogheny River (Somerset, Fayette counties): The tailrace will receive its last in-season stocking of rainbow trout Sept. 2. Truck meets at 10:30 a.m. at the Youghiogheny Dam Outflow Campground.

Brush Creek (Somerset County): An American eel was recently caught and released, according to one angler. Freshwater eels are native to Pennsylvania waters, but are more common to the Delaware River and Great Lakes and rarely seen in the Ohio River watershed. Eels migrate great distances and are the only “catadromous” fish in North America, meaning they spawn in saltwater (near Bermuda) and live as adults in fresh water. It is not known if the Brush Creek eel migrated there or was stocked by aquarium owner or angler. Neither endangered nor threatened, freshwater eels are legal year-round in the state with a 9-inch minimum and daily creel limit of 25.

Canonsburg Lake (Washington County): Despite recent rains, bullheads and big channel cats were taken with dough balls and chicken livers.

Cross Creek Lake (Washington County): Bluegill were scattered.Crappies were taken in 13 feet on a metallic spoon and at 10-15 a tipped jig. One angler caught 9 bass up to 3 pounds jigging from shore with shiners and crawlers.

 

[dryflyguy]

I think the liberal point of view fishing report is just a tad bit better.
But maybe that's just because I'm a democrat!

 

[Acristickid]

Updated SW reports from Tribune Review-

• In Greene County and in the southern half of Washington County, walleye are beginning to move into the Monongahela lock areas. Fishermen looking to pick up flathead catfish might have a difficult time, but it is reported that the Maxwell Lock and Dam area is harboring a steady flow of gar. The best success rates for the gar are attributed to using live bait with a pantyhose tail.

• While fishing has been slow recently on the Monongahela River in Fayette County, the Youghiogheny is yielding channel catfish, smallmouth bass and some trout for local anglers.

• At Somerset Lake, limitations on seasons, sizes and creel have been lifted in preparation for the complete drawdown of the lake in order to repair the dam. The changes will be in effect until the lake is closed.

• Donegal Lake also is preparing for a drawdown for dam repairs and will be peeling back restrictions on season, size and creel until further notice.

• Catfish have been biting on the Monongahela River in Washington County. The areas with moving water have been the most fruitful for local anglers.

• The Conemaugh River Lake area is giving nicely sized smallmouth bass to fishermen who are hitting the water in the early morning hours.

• At Loyalhanna Lake, anglers are reporting success in the dawn and dusk hours as well as at night.

• The North East Marina on Lake Erie is providing fishermen with a decent population of walleye. The walleye have been on the smaller side of late, but in deeper waters (from 70-90 feet), locals are having more luck. On the east side of the county, yellow perch fishing still is slow in the lake.

• Despite high water temperatures, anglers fishing the deeper waters of Conneaut Lake still are finding fish.

• Recent spurts of rain around Lake Pleasant are improving the number of panfish that have been caught from shore. Pike and Bass still are present in the lake, but anglers are having better luck catching those fish from boats.

• On Pymatuning Lake, the fishing has been slow in spots, but fatfish, bluegill and crappie still are biting for fishermen from time to time. Fishermen hitting the lake at night are picking up a few crappie and walleye.

• Temperatures have cooled at North Park Lake, where the fish are becoming more active of late. It is reported that the bass and panfish are hitting better for anglers. One of the hot spots is around the island on the lake, specifically where trees tend to hang over the water to provide shade for the fish.

• Trout fishing continues to be slow at Pine Creek, but anglers are reporting smallmouth bass catches.

• Fishing on the Allegheny River in Kittanning is picking up, with local anglers picking up a few catfish with suckers as bait. Fishermen also are picking up smallmouth bass, though none are of noteworthy size.

Kevin Lohman is a freelance writer.

 

[Acristickid]

From Pittsburgh Tribune Review

• Fishing conditions at Lake Erie are improving as anglers are reporting yellow perch catches between 45 to 60 feet out on the of Walnut water. Bass anglers have had luck in the bay using assorted soft plastic as bait. Walleye also have been steady in the area east of East Avenue.

• At Lake Arthur, anglers are anticipating more bites from yellow perch, which usually become more prevalent in September and October. Until then, fishermen are catching walleye and channel catfish on the Old 422 roadbed in front of Crescent Bay, adjacent to the Crescent Bay Island. Nightcrawlers have been working well for walleye and catfish, and a rubber twister tail grub following behind a bobber is a solid approach for yellow perch.

• Kahle Lake in Clarion County is providing anglers with a variety of bluegill, yellow perch and a number of largemouth bass.

• Walleye, smallmouth bass and trout are being reported in Redbank Creek, near the dam in New Bethlehem.

• Solid amounts of panfish and largemouth bass are being reported at Beaver Creek Ponds Project.

• The Allegheny River in Clarion County is yielding channel catfish to anglers fishing the waters at night. Walleye and smallmouth bass also are hitting near the Parker Islands and toward the mouth of the Clarion River mouth. In Upper Clarion River, catches of smallmouth bass and a few trout are being reported.

• Because of the drawdown in water levels at Piney Dam, a good deal of channel catfish, walleye and smallmouth bass are being caught.

• Anglers fishing Tionesta Lake are finding bluegill and yellow perch in the vicinity of the marina. Musky also are being found in the morning and evening.

• In Venango County, fishermen are catching smallmouth bass, walleye and a few muskellunge.

• At Cross Creek Lake, anglers are picking up more bluegill. Ant jigs, maggots and meal worms are working well with the bluegill, which are being caught in about 10 feet of water. Largemouth bass also are active in the area and are being picked up mostly on shiners.

• On the Ohio River in Western Allegheny County, cooler water temperatures are providing an increased number of walleye, smallmouth bass, sauger and large-sized catfish. Anglers are catching the fish from boat and from shore.

• The Quemahoning Reservoir is giving off northern pike and largemouth bass to local fishermen.

• Anglers are catching channel catfish at Somerset Lake. Season, size and creel limit regulations have been lifted at the lake in preparation for a complete drawdown that is scheduled to occur in 2017.

• Cranberry Glade Lake is weedy, making shoreline fishing difficult. But fishermen using boats are reporting largemouth bass catches.

• Low water levels on the Youghiogheny River Lake are leading to a good deal of smallmouth bass catches.

Kevin Lohman is a freelance writer.