I’m new to fly fishing and this is one of the only spots for many many miles that contains naturally producing trout. You would assume it is pressured but to be quite honest I don’t think that’s the case because of how intense of a course and can be very dangerous if attacked at the wrong time and way. There are a few holes that have deep pockets that range 3.5-4 ft across and 2.5-3 ft deep in some spots but many are just the size of 2 back packs that are maybe 2 feet deeps as displayed in the photo above. I did see about 3 adult brown trout on my scout and many many trout fry almost so much that I think there is a decent amount of trout in this location.
Posted by Apprehensive_Big_783
14 Comments
pretty much a crawl from the bottom right of this photo and flip or bow an arrow a dry at the white water
With a fly. Don’t overthink it. Fish in small streams like that won’t be picky. A dry fly floating or drowned will catch, a nymph will catch. Get at it!
Sneak in and dip that fly in homie
I like to use my 3 wt for smaller streams like this. Mainly throwing small dries with or without a dropper. Bow casting is the best way to get into tight areas where some fish might be hiding up in. The casting is more precise and you won’t get snagged on a back cast
I’m not experienced enough to tell you how to fish this, but I’m very jealous. You live near Trout Water, there’s none within three hours of me. Thanks for the pretty photo. I would guess a single dry fly on a regular size leader.
I would stand on those rocks in the bottom left and cast a weighted wooly bugger into the hole and jig it around a bit. If the current is too strong and pushes it away you could climb up next to that waterfall and swing the wooly bugger.
If none of that is working I might switch to a dry dropper or a nymph under an indicator. I don’t know your region but if there are grasshoppers casting a foam hopper into that foam might get a bite, especially later in the seasons around July-August when fish tend to get on the grasshoppers more.
I mostly saltwater fish but do a little freshwater when I get up into the mountains. I have no idea if what I’m doing is best but works for me in small pools like this. I crouch a little upstream of the pool to keep a low profile. Then drop the fly into the water just above the pool and let the current take it through the plunge and the rest of the pool. Again, not a bunch of FW experience but works for me. Interested to read other responses since I just retired and am planning to get up into the mountains for hiking/fishing a lot more….
Just hold the tip of your rod over the hole and drop your fly in. You shouldn’t really need to cast in anyway. Try nymphs
With that much white you probably don’t have to be sneaky. Slap an attractor on the water with just the end of your fly line hanging out of the tip top. You’re fishing your leader. It’s basically like fishing Tenkara without the embarrassment of owning a Tenkara.
Work upstream, dry-dropper rig, use the cover (and cloud cover if applicable) to your advantage, lots of bow and arrow casting.
3wt with a Parachute Adams or Royal Wulff
I’d use my short 4 wt with a 6 ft leader (even better, a furled leader) and a foot of tippet tied to a bead-head pheasant tail. I’d apply floatant (like Gink) to the thicker part of the leader. Then you cast upstream across the pool into the plunge. Let the current drift the fly towards you (going deep), while you strip to keep the line straight. Focus on the loop-to-loop connection of your line/leader — there’s sometimes a colored/red strip there for this purpose. When that jumps upstream, lift gently and set the hook.
If that’s the stream in Western PA that I think it is, yes it gets pressure.
You just have to add weight and get it down there quick