East Branch Clarion lake running shy of cold water

Cougarbaby

Cougarbaby

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As usual this lake is starting to run out of cold water this time of year,fish the river early in the morning for best results,temps are climbing to 62-63 right below the dam and warm up further down stream,won't last long though,but the main Clarion will start to cool down as there night times are going into the low 50s in Ridgeway for the next 10 days at least,that means big brown time is right around the corner,can't wait
 
Cougarbaby said:
As usual this lake is starting to run out of cold water this time of year,fish the river early in the morning for best results,temps are climbing to 62-63 right below the dam and warm up further down stream,won't last long though,but the main Clarion will start to cool down as there night times are going into the low 50s in Ridgeway for the next 10 days at least,that means big brown time is right around the corner,can't wait
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I've never fished the Clarion for trout. Is it worth the drive of 2 plus hours?
 
jifigz said:
I've never fished the Clarion for trout. Is it worth the drive of 2 plus hours?
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Would I recommend going there to camp, explore, hike, float and do some fishing? Absolutely. We go to Cook Forest every year, it's a beautiful area.

Would I go there from where you live just to fish? I don't know, you would be driving past a lot of nice wild trout water to get there. Clarion is mixed stocked / wild waters, and most of the feeders are stocked. You don't seem to be the kinda guy that is big on stocked trout, but maybe I'm wrong.
 
It has some very big brown trout.
You could have a banner day if you catch multiple big browns and it will feel worth it.

Chances are you won't and then you'll think it wasn't.

It's like fishing anywhere else 2 plus hours away when the goal is catching. Catch and be happy, dont and think you should have fished closer.
 
dudemanspecial said:
Would I recommend going there to camp, explore, hike, float and do some fishing? Absolutely. We go to Cook Forest every year, it's a beautiful area.

Would I go there from where you live just to fish? I don't know, you would be driving past a lot of nice wild trout water to get there. Clarion is mixed stocked / wild waters, and most of the feeders are stocked. You don't seem to be the kinda guy that is big on stocked trout, but maybe I'm wrong.
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I've spent lots of time at Cook Forest and fishing the Clarion River. I went to college at Clarion. I loved it, and I enjoyed fishing the river. I've just never been to the tailwaters type section for the fish. There aren't really many wild browns?
 
This is what I caught Monday,to me this is a good day ,if this isn't a good day for you I'd suggest you go elsewhere,this was on EB,
 

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The tailwater being referenced is East Branch Clarion.

Clarion River from Johnsonburg downstream to Ridgeway is a unique larger trout river. Access is fairly limited without floating. There are certainly some wildfish moving around, but its stocked with fingerlings. Whatever there origin, it can produce some very nice fish.

I wouldnt drive 2 hours just to fish the mainstem or the east branch without making it a longer weekend trip to camp etc.
 
Because of this thread and my extra time at work I was poking around a bit and found this article.
Two things jumped out at me though the article is 11 years old now.

1) are there numerous 6-8 brookies in the east branch?
2) the author can't figure out why is alone in August fishing it while you guys are telling people to lay off of it soon.....

I think I know why he is alone 🤣

www.flyfisherman.com

Clarion River Revival - Fly Fisherman

The hatches are coming back, but even without them, the 30-inch-plus browns in the Clarion River have plenty to eat . . .
www.flyfisherman.com www.flyfisherman.com
 
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lycoflyfisher said:
The tailwater being referenced is East Branch Clarion.

Clarion River from Johnsonburg downstream to Ridgeway is a unique larger trout river. Access is fairly limited without floating. There are certainly some wildfish moving around, but its stocked with fingerlings. Whatever there origin, it can produce some very nice fish.

I wouldnt drive 2 hours just to fish the mainstem or the east branch without making it a longer weekend trip to camp etc.
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True and for only the reason that some would get utterly upset and I've grown weary of ungrateful whining, even from myself, I won't say anything other than by de facto, both are.
 
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jifigz said:
I've never fished the Clarion for trout. Is it worth the drive of 2 plus hours?
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I drive up from Pittsburgh, every chance I get. Fantastic waterway.

tjsingle said:
The Clarion has intrigued me, I want to get up there some time. There's a guide service that posts pretty frequently that has some good looking fish as well.
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Dark skies?

FisherOfMen said:
Because of this thread and my extra time at work I was poking around a bit and found this article.
Two things jumped out at me though the article is 11 years old now.

1) are there numerous 6-8 brookies in the east branch?
2) the author can't figure out why is alone in August fishing it while you guys are telling people to lay off of it soon.....

I think I know why he is alone 🤣

www.flyfisherman.com

Clarion River Revival - Fly Fisherman

The hatches are coming back, but even without them, the 30-inch-plus browns in the Clarion River have plenty to eat . . .
www.flyfisherman.com www.flyfisherman.com
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Ive caught big brookies in the main stem, WELL below ridgeway for what thats worth.
 
TerrellBFly said:
I drive up from Pittsburgh, every chance I get. Fantastic waterway.


Dark skies?


Ive caught big brookies in the main stem, WELL below ridgeway for what thats worth.
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My guess on the guide is Brown Trout Addiction - Don Cameroni
The drive is worth it, it is a tricky river. Flows, dam release, seasons, and other factors play into what kind of a day you will have. Access is limited without a watercraft, but not impossible. There are several guides who float from Jburg to Ridgeway, and several members here who fish it regularly and have great insights.
 
as it was mentioned access is limited if you are wading , best to fish it from canoe / kayak , its not exactly a bug factory , but it has some hatches .... i`ve caught some browns over 20 " throwing streamers , i think one guide service is called brown trout addiction
 
When I say the drive isn't worth it, thats coming from someone who lives in central pa like myself and Jfigz. I can fish penns, spring, BFC, Little J, and a plethora of freestone mountain streams with less than an hour drive. I rarely if ever drive 2 hours to fish for a day trip.

If you are coming from Pittsburgh, the trip is certainly more worthwhile.

For me, I am not doing that unless I am making a multi day event out of it.

I have fished the East Branch, not saying there aren't brook trout. But my experience would say there are much better streams to target brook trout. Many of the tribs to east branch and above the lake have brookies.
 
FisherOfMen said:
What is "big" and are they holdover or wild fish?

And are they numerous in the East Branch?
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Over 12" and yes wild and native as it gets. Not an every day catch by any means, but they are there and have seen the net.

The river is having a great summer. Really wish more conservation enforcement would go towards it in the upper reaches.
 
TerrellBFly said:
Over 12" and yes wild and native as it gets. Not an every day catch by any means, but they are there and have seen the net.

The river is having a great summer. Really wish more conservation enforcement would go towards it in the upper reaches.
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Interesting. You should start noting when and where you find them. What's around etc.

I would be willing to bet my bottom dollar, while still not a regular catch you could up their frequency. My guess is they are transient and not using the mainstem year round. If true, there is an even bigger one in the bunch of "movers" and is able to be found with some work.
 
lycoflyfisher said:
When I say the drive isn't worth it, thats coming from someone who lives in central pa like myself and Jfigz. I can fish penns, spring, BFC, Little J, and a plethora of freestone mountain streams with less than an hour drive. I rarely if ever drive 2 hours to fish for a day trip.
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This was the viewpoint I was coming from as well knowing where Josh lives and seemingly what he likes to fish for. I would never tell anyone NOT to drive to fish anywhere, any fishing is better than no fishing, but I live essentially equidistant to central PA and the area in mention, and it's pretty rare for ME to not head east instead of north. My fishing time is limited and I rarely float though. If I had loads of time I would fish everywhere I possibly could.
 
FisherOfMen said:
Interesting. You should start noting when and where you find them. What's around etc.

I would be willing to bet my bottom dollar, while still not a regular catch you could up their frequency. My guess is they are transient and not using the mainstem year round. If true, there is an even bigger one in the bunch of "movers" and is able to be found with some work.
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Oh I have a log book I keep at camp up there. I fill out air temp, water cfs, dates, catches, whatnot and keep a mental map of where I have caught these fish. In about 10 years I hope to have a nice little longitudinal log of the rivers tendencies. There are patterns, and have found cold water seeps and tribs as a result, - that's where I have been finding them at certain points of the year - they do absolutely move around.
 
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