Break

[osprey]

How many of yinz , like myself give the fishing a little break during the dog days?Istill spend lots of time on the water but do more naturalizing and less actual fishing , anyone else?

 

[The_Sasquatch]

In the past I have, but man, this year I just can't stop fishing. I think about it constantly! Don't know what's going on this year, I got the bug I guess.

I will give certain streams a break, obviously, and I'll do a lot more WW during the dog days, but I don't know. Any time I smell water I want to wet a line right now.

 

[franklin]

I lay off the warmer streams when it's this hot. Fortunately I have a few that stay cool that aren't too far.

 

[Chaz]

I switch to Limestone streams, except that the last 2 years have been so ot the fishing hasn't been all that good. Even the ww fishing I've done has sucked. But I still spend plenty of time outside.

 

[osprey]

Squatch.........what kind of bugs are you buggin em on? I love fishing a black foam ant this time of year , they seem to take them like candy , like they know they actually taste good , try em on marble rye..........heh

 

[franklin]

Chaz wrote:
I switch to Limestone streams, except that the last 2 years have been so ot the fishing hasn't been all that good. Even the ww fishing I've done has sucked. But I still spend plenty of time outside.

There are sections on the LL where even with air temps in the high 90s my legs get numb.

 

[The_Sasquatch]

Depends where I'm fishin, I guess, Osprey! Limestoners, I'm rockin' black foam ants, grasshoppers, beetles, all the summertime treats. On the small mountain streams, I've been rockin' caddis and green weenies.

The bass, its been all kinds of different stuff. The other night I was catching them on a size 10 royal wulff! It almost becomes a game like, "I wonder if THIS fly could catch a bass!"

 

[fritz]

Yep, I do. Used to fish the river when I had a boat and it was too warm to fish for trout. But now I spend more time with family during the summer. Family knows I'm on a different schedule when the hot weather is over though.

 

[osprey]

When the marginal streams get warm , and the trout stack up at the mouths of tribs and springs there should be a heron hunting season its brutal to watch , the trout are not easy to catch on flies when this is going on they are more concerned with breathing than eating but the herons have a feast.

 

[KeithS]

I've been hitting a fair size creek near me for SM and panfish. It feels like low pressure casting, drifting, mending, hooksetting practice.

 

[Swattie87]

Speaking of Herons...any one else seem to think their population is sky rocketing. Pretty much every stream I fish, except for the high elevation/high gradient tiny Brookie runs seems to have a resident Heron population now. I don't always see the bird(s) themselves, but their tell tale tracks are there on the streambank. Maybe I just never took a notice before, but I used to remember them just being on larger streams.

 

[Troy]

Swattie87 wrote:
Speaking of Herons...any one else seem to think their population is sky rocketing. Pretty much every stream I fish, except for the high elevation/high gradient tiny Brookie runs seems to have a resident Heron population now. I don't always see the bird(s) themselves, but their tell tale tracks are there on the streambank. Maybe I just never took a notice before, but I used to remember them just being on larger streams.

I see them everywhere now. I was just talking aobut this the other day. I never remembered seeing them when I was young. Now, it's rare when i don't see them. This is at least my observation in SE PA. I don't really recall seeing many in the state college area or north cental PA.

 

[Swattie87]

I agree Troy...I don't see as many once I get N or NW of Blue Mountain (the first major ridge you come to working NW from the Philly area), but they're everywhere in southern Dauphin, southern Lebanon, Berks and Lancaster Counties.

 

[pcray1231]

I think it is well established that their population has increased impressively over the last few decades.

My basic understanding, and this is not confirmed, is that the recovery is because people stopped shooting them.

And there is some concern over future populations, ironically, due to the abolition of DDT. DDT harmed bald eagles the most, thus it's abolition has been increasing Bald Eagle populations. Bald Eagles don't like herons. They'll harrass the adults until they leave, occasionally even kill them, raid nests and eat the eggs and young, etc. So the recovery of eagles could threaten heron populations.

 

[Troy]

pcray1231 wrote:
I think it is well established that their population has increased impressively over the last few decades.

My basic understanding, and this is not confirmed, is that the recovery is because people stopped shooting them.

And there is some concern over future populations, ironically, due to the abolition of DDT. DDT harmed bald eagles the most, thus it's abolition has been increasing Bald Eagle populations. Bald Eagles don't like herons. They'll harrass the adults until they leave, occasionally even kill them, raid nests and eat the eggs and young, etc. So the recovery of eagles could threaten heron populations.

Let's go Eagles! I would be more content if it were Eagles killing fish than Herons.