Codorus & Conewago Creeks, York County, 7/10/13

[klingy]

Pulled a cold water/warmwater double header today. Fished the TT section of the Codorus from daybreak until around 9:00. Fish were going crazy on top, but I couldn't see anything coming off (most risers were in the slower pools). Put on a parachute adams and immediately picked up three in the first section of stream. Had a long-distance-release of another really nice fish (17" +). Worked upstream alternating between the adams and a BHPT size 14. Caught a total of 10-12 mostly in the 6-10 inch range. It was a beautiful summer morning with the fog on the stream slowly lifting as the sun came up through the trees. The splash of rising fish completed the scene.

I then headed over to the Conewago to chase some smallies. Had to wait about 20 mins. for a shower to pass, but it gave me time to rig up my 6 wt. Tied on a black bunny clouser and hit the water. Right away I saw scattering baitfish all over the place. I don't know if it was the rain, or the cloudy day, but the smallies were hungry and active. Hooked up within the first few casts and the action continued steadily for the next hour and a half. It seemed like every spot that should hold a fish did. I had one jump completely out of the water 3 times for a black popper. This is the first time this year that I've been out for smallies, and I forgot how much fun they are! Ended up with about 15 in the short time I was out. Looking forward to getting out again soon.

 

[JakesLeakyWaders]

I always manage to lose the big ones on the Codorus. They fight so hard in that stream and there is lots of woody debris.

I was on the Conewago yesterday. Glad to here someone else is finding the fish on that stream.

 

[TimRobinsin]

Nice Smallies!

 

[The_Sasquatch]

I keep thinking I need to get down and try Codorus.

 

[wgmiller]

Pick a nice, hot day to visit the Codorus. You'll appreciate it more!

 

[sipe]

Truth! That water is ICEY (not sure how you spell that)

 

[laszlo]

And don't forget your waders, you cannot wet wade that stream.

 

[klingy]

Yeah, it's cold, but I really don't find it too cold to wet wade. I don't know that I've worn waders there since march. Once you get used to it (legs go numb) its actually refreshing!

 

[sipe]

My arm was numbed just trying to extract a snagged fly!

 

[wgmiller]

Those browns look fairly consistent with what I catch in there as well. I'm sure there are larger, but generally speaking, I haven't found them yet. It's hard to get the big boys to come out of their hiding spots while nymphing and I haven't had a lot of luck streamer fishing that stream.

 

[NedZeppelin]

That codorus looks amazing, and the side order of small mouths a worthy trip all on its own. Thanks for sharing! Great pix.

 

[The_Sasquatch]

Okay...so what makes it a trophy trout water? Should I not assume that the browns are larger? I see those browns, and then I see the size of the trout that are caught consistently on the Lack, big difference!

 

[laszlo]

You are right about that, I think I only caught one "trophy" trout on that water and it was a rainbow to boot. I've caught many ranging from 2" to 11" but mostly 5-6 inches. Those big browns must have found some good hiding places.

 

[Maurice]

The Codorus Trophy Trout designation arrived at by the PF&BC when the special regulation reduction occurred in the early "2000's". It was originally under selective Harvest regulations allowing for harvest of browns over 12" and Brooks over I believe 9". The Brooks are gone now...

Trophy Trout regulations were the only "fit" for harvest restrictions that also allowed artificial lures and excluded stocking. (which the codorus does not need since its a Class A wild Trout Stream.

Harvest does indeed occur there as well as the use of bait.. Though I am pretty sure the actors are stealthy but sloppy in their techniques. They leave styrofoam bait containers lying on the gravel bars of the big holes. Local Kids mostly...just enjoying a day on the water.

Back when I was semi-retired I used to fish it during the week and was assured a 1/2 dozen to a dozen dish in a couple hours fishing short beats. It got to the point that it became a pitch and putt. A birdie would be a 12+" fish in an undercut bank or tree root hole. You had to weed through the small "Sentry" fish at the backs of the holes to get to the big fish feeding in the riffles.

One day working a familiar beat I did everything right. and could not find the "pool bosses" in four consecutive holes...I was confused but also surprised at the amount of footprints on the gravel point bars adjacent to the holes. Then I got to the last hole and the on the gravel bar were two empty worm containers...

 

[wgmiller]

Not to mention, some of the "good" water upstream of the sawmill is now posted.

There isn't a lot of water in that area for trout fishing and the Codorus' proximity to roadways probably makes it a tempting target. I'd love to see an electroshocking survery done to see exactly what's in there. I'd be surprised if there are many "trophy trout" in that stream, although I do believe there are probably some 14-18" fish that know how to hide well. Generally speaking, if you're catching wild browns in the 6-10" range, you're catching what most of us are.

 

[CodorusTUTom]

Many people have long considered the term “Trophy Trout” for that water to be a misnomer. It sets unrealistic expectations and makes it sound that much more attractive to poachers. Lots of guys would like to see it called anything but ‘Trophy.’
The fish that do manage to grow larger have a lot working in their favor. I believe that most folks who don’t do well there simply don’t use the stealth required for wild trout in close quarters. They send those ‘sentries’ Maurice mentioned scurrying and alarm the better fish before they even cast. And most of the poachers I’ve seen over there don’t have the skills to do much damage. Do they luck into nice trout sometimes? I’m sure they do and it annoys the crap out of me – I’m just not convinced they have much effect. Most of the poachers I hear about (and I hear plenty) usually don’t have any fish in their possession. If they do, it’s usually only 1 or 2 and they’re not necessarily larger fish.
I’ve fished outside the TT area (in open water or with permission) where there’s no special regs, and little if any fishing (poaching or otherwise) taking place. I’ve found the numbers and size distribution in those areas to be same as the TT section. That tells me its habitat, biomass, etc. driving the size and numbers of fish – not regulations, poaching or whatever.
Anyway, say what you will about it, but the bottom line is that it’s a cold, healthy wild trout stream that we’re all lucky to have – we should enjoy it and work hard to preserve its future no matter how big the fish are.

 

[Mike]

It is likely in this particular stream that the availability of big fish physical habitat exceeds the ability of the stream to support large fish due to the limited availability of forage fish. This appears to be true throughout the wild trout stretch except in its lower mile. In such situations large fish may roam substantially in order to find enough forage and occupy different holes at different times, leaving a few to many holes vacant with angler perception then being that poachers or substantial harvest of larger fish have been at work. Regulations that stockpile smaller fish and voluntary catch and release fishing probably contribute to this problem, but anglers might not be happy with the size of the reduction in the abundance of smaller to mid-size wild trout that could be necessary to improve larger fish abundance. And I am not certain that it would work in this case. The limited ability of the special reg area to produce larger fish was the reason why we originally instituted selective harvest (12") regs on this stream.

 

[laszlo]

You are right about the forage fish, I've only caught trout on codorus, where as on Muddy Creek I'll catch chubs 10-1.