Brodhead and McMichaels Creek, Monroe Co, 9/4/20

Tigereye

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Lehigh Gorge
After chomping at the bit to fish, for over 2 months, conditions of the 2 listed streams started to cooperate. USGS had BH flows at 60 cfs but more importantly morning temps at 66F. Water clarity was dingy and off color. Skies were overcast though clearing as morning went on. Temps were in low to mid 70's. Fished 7:30 till noon. Only insect activity were 2 lone caddis of unkown type ~#16's, and a few now dead spotted lantern flies. Bastards. The high water we had a month ago changed the character of the streams in places. Washing out old lies and creating new ones. Vegetation on banks was damaged, some trees down and alot of trash strewn about.

Started at BH with a Prince nymph and Iron lotus. Caught 2 RBs 2 smallmouths and a fallfish. All on the prince. Saw one fish rise 1x but he was inaccessible on the other side of stream. Left BH at 10:00 when sun started to hit water.

Fished McM in town changing rig to a Green Weenie and a Black soft hackle. My reason was i wanted to see if the colors made a difference in the off color water. It came as no surprise the GW claimed 2 more rainbows and a SMB. I missed 3 other fish all after having on line for about 4-5 seconds. Im thinking i wasnt getting good hooksets on small mouths.

When i lost my last GW, i switched to a pink squirmy. (I know another trash fly.) But im a fisherman and my goal is to catch fish) . Again water color driving the decision. I caught one more Brown about 16-17 inches that came in sluggishly. More "resistance" than "fight". By my eye he may bave been a holdover from lazt year or wild. Good fins and an easily discerned blue eye spot. No pictures as i thought water temps were rising and wanted to return him asap. He seemed fine on release and shot back to deeper water instantly. Where was that spunk when he was hookeded. I took temp after releasing fish and had a reading of 68. He should be fine.

On a side note, the PSP were out in full force enforcing speed limits on I80 east and west. They had folks pulled over on both sides, at least a dozen. I did notice alot of the perps were from NY. If you drive that stretch much, you wouldnt find that surprising.
 
Glad to hear that you like to catch fish. The last time I checked there were still no “style points” being issued to anglers.
 
Nice report. I've been wanting to give the BH a try again now that temp's are lower. Were there many fisherman in the stretch you fished?

I see you are from Lehigh Gorge. I fished Lehigh on Tues between Tannery and Rockport. Fished til almost sun down. Caught couple SMB and 1 small wild brown. Disappointing evening on the LR but the solitude and landscape made up for it!
 
Didnt see anyone on BH. 2 baitfisherman showed up as i was leaving McM. They couldnt have fished more than 5 minutes, because by the time I put my gear away and was still eating a sandwich they were back at their car.

Lehigh R. Is a tuff nut to crack at this time of year and at these temps. I usually wait til temps are consistently below 65. My theory here being at the marginal range of temps, they tend to gang up near the refuge areas ie trib confluences, springs, deep holes etc and the lehigh is just too big and difficult walking even in low water, that they (the fish) can be difficult to access. Once the water cools sufficiently the fish spread out and are more accessable to us.

Is that theory true, i dont know but it is what i think is happenning. Similar to the question of where are all the deer once hunting season starts I'll? They find a refuge during stressfull times and hang out till things return to normal. Then once again they return to their normal haunts.

Fish are not deer but they are still driven by 3 things. Security Food and reproduction. Security being the primary driver. If you have ever fished for salmon you will notice the fish will almost always take the path of most cover as they make their way up stream. They dont eat and sex is on their mind but cover is primary importance.

Sorry i got off on a tangent but thought it would make for good discussion.

What has been your experience?
 
Millser i have been itching to get back out on the Lehigh myself but wasnt sure the temps were low enough yet. Curious to know what the temp was in that area you were in. Not hating on your choice to fish, i live an hour away and all i have to go off of is the FEW guage, so i'm always curious what the actual temp a few miles below is compared to what the guage says. I usually wait til the FEW guage is at 66 or lower before i fish

This past weekend was the last silly WW release too so thankfully no more worries about that on weekends when wanting to fish
 
Tiger....I think your analogy is good. My experiences are similar. I love the LR and live 10 minutes away but I seldom have banner days (fish wise) like I can on other nearby streams. Not sure why I haven't purchased a raft yet so I can safely fish more of the river.


Timmy...Temp in my location was 65*. This was below a couple of cool water LR tribs. The LR gets cooler the further you get away from FEW.
 
Starting to find some nice Brownies up here in the Poconos on the colder mornings

Tight Lines !!
 

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Nice fish!!!
 
Fished both again yesterday. Water was chrystal clear. Got the skunk at broadheads, 2 small browns (wild?) A
nd a stocked rainbow in McM.
 
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