Wade fishing for smallies...somewhere new?

[tddeangelo]

I have a friend visiting Thursday through Sunday. Fri-Sun we will be going to the Gunmakers' Fair at Kempton (flintlock stuff...really cool if you've got any interest in such things). Thursday....I'd like to try to have a fishing adventure if we can.

I don't have a boat for he and I to use. He's coming down from Maine. I figured we can fish the nearby Schuylkill in the evenings after spending the day on the flintlock stuff, since I'm only a few minutes from the Schuylkill.

But.... I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions for something a big more adventurous for us to try Thurs? I'm 10 min east of the Cabela's store in Hamburg. The Susquehanna, Juniata, Lehigh, and Delaware are within semi-reasonable driving distance. I just don't know the rivers or where to even begin to try fishing them afoot.

Smallmouth would be the most likely target species, but I'm really open to anything. Just want to maybe try something new and give a buddy a fun day on the water. We don't need piles of fish nor anyone's secret spots. Just maybe some spots to look at as starting points?

If not, I understand.

 

[Dave_W]

Right now the big rivers are very low and great for wade fishing. You don't need a boat.

Check out the PFBC public access sites on the Susky and Juniata Rivers. There are a lot of them. They're busy on weekends but a Thursday afternoon would be better (I fished a popular public access ramp on the Susky on a recent weekday and was the only car parked there). Most of these ramps have plenty of parking and you can wade hundreds of yards out from them right now. Evenings tend to fish better on hot sunny days in summer and you might see some white flies. Drinking water and sunscreen are a must. Generally speaking, the Juniata is a bit easier to wade and a bit easier for new anglers to "read," although a bit further drive for you.

Good luck with your trip. The flintlock show sounds really cool.
Dave

 

[tddeangelo]

The show is pretty cool! Definitely worth checking out for anyone even remotely interested in flintlocks.

Looks like my friend won't get here till mid-afternoon on Thurs, so we won't have the full day. We'll focus on the Schuylkill in the early evening/late afternoon each day (show is done at 5 each day so we'll have some time).