Here is a quick after action report. Thanks again for all of the great input. My wife and I fished Big Spring Creek yesterday morning, July 31. First, it is beautiful as all of you likely know. It was certainly challenging. We enjoyed ourselves, and I managed to land two beautiful brookies, both in the 6-7 inch range on a size 18 red zebra midge. I think that I failed to recognize the light strikes until I finally recognized one, so it is hard to know how many strikes we had. Water temp was roughly 58. We will return someday (perhaps with a guide!). Then we decided to drive over to Boiling Springs and look at Yellow Breeches in the early afternoon. We parked at the lot at the Run and decided to take our gear and give things a try. We started out in the main stem of the stream. The water level is low and very clear. Temp was mid/upper 60s in the shallows. We were pretty tired and maybe a little cranky when a couple of guys decided to climb out on log crossing the stream, smoke pot and make a lot of noise so we decided to fish our way back to the parking lot. Just below the confluence with the Run I landed one rather nice rainbow on a green grub. Water temp there was right around 60 and a little distance up in the Run it was roughly 58. Perhaps the highlight of the entire day was watching what we think was an adult female osprey with two immature birds calling one another, etc. The adult had a large fish in its talons, so I think they enjoyed a nice late day meal. All of this took place directly above us a the confluence with the Run!
At the risk of going on too long, my wife asked me to add these additional comments from her point of view. First, fishing from the stream bank close in with trees, weeds, etc. on Big Spring was something new and especially difficult for her while trying to be mindful of her rod, her line, her cast, etc. Also, the precise casting required on Big Spring was tough. Yellow Breeches was more open and easier for her. Access at both locations was excellent. The port-a-potty at the Run was a big plus. We were reminded that even in places where most visitors are good stewards and appreciate the stream, etc. we need to take along a small trash bag to pick up trash left by others. We look forward to returning to Boiling Springs and checking out some of the shops in the area (some of which appeared to be closed on a Monday).
Bottom line is that we had a great day and we look forward to returning to both streams and perhaps exploring others in the area, too, based on your suggestions.
