Elk Creek, Erie County PA 12/5/2009

[David]

Albie, Bruno, GoodFortune, and I made the trip to Erie to meet JayL and his gang as well as PCray on Saturday. Everything pointed to a banner day on Friday night. But when Alby checked the flows first thing Sat morning, the streams dropped much quicker than we had hoped and the water temp dropped from 4.5 degrees to 1 degree C overnight.


While things weren't as ideal as we hoped, when we got to Sterretania, they weren't all bad either. The water was cold and clear...and fairly low. There were a few fresh fish up that high, but many had jewelry and battle scars, as well. Iced guides and frozen reels were a consideration throughout the day; it didn't occur often enough to detract from the fishing, however.


Alby had the hot hand to start hooking numerous fish by dead drifting buggers and eggs. He had bad tippet so he lost too many fish due to break offs, but still managed to land numerous fish.
Bruno had a good day by "slapping the hamster" with gaudy salmon streamers. Goes to show that "you can catch them by showing something they haven't seen before," as he says.
I had my success with small (#16-18) nymphs and pale, single eggs.
JayL was swearing by anything in a peach color.
GoodFurtune hooked up numerous times by switching up with a variety of flies.
PCray landed at least 7 fish. He spent 3 days up there, so hopefully he'll add more of his insight.


JayL and crew were staying on at least one more day.
Hope everyone made it home safely, though as we faced some ice and white-out conditions on the way home.


Here are some images including:
Alby proving to Bruno that the tailing glove was worth the money...he held onto that guy!!! (I was impressed!)

A picture I like to call "Albie's biggest fish"...of course, the fish is about 1 foot out of the frame by time the shutter flashed...so we'll never really know!!

Some shots other shots of fish and the snow at dusk...

 

[Bruno]

Goodtimes guys. Thanks for the fun. Good seeing everyone. Big thanks goes out to David for driving us home safely in blizzard conditions. Looking forward to going back soon.

I learned a few things yesterday. 1. Take your sunglasses off before you put your headlamp on. 2. Take the wet waders and boots outta the car when it is below freezing. 3. The river changes from year to year. Look at spots that have never been productive. Break your old "I know it habits. "

 

[Fishidiot]

Sounds like another great time - sorry I couldn't be there.

 

[JasonS]

Great report. I'm jealous. I need to get back up there, maybe this weekend depending on conditions.

 

[albatross]

David, love the snow shot, maybe it'll make next year's calendar? I'll add my gratitude for getting us home safe through the snow.

GoodFortune, chime in and let us know you made it home safe. We tried calling after the blizard died down, but the call went straight to your VM. It was nice to fish with you again.

This photo doesn't do him justice, but Bruno makes a great elf!

I had a nice day out with good friends, and caught a few fish too! I enjoyed meeting PCray and JayL's gang. I'll be armed with fresh tippet for my next trip, hopefully over Christmas break.

 

[pcray1231]

Yes, I hunted Mon-Wed. Hit a buck Monday morning, but was not able to recover it. Heavy rain made following the blood trail very difficult, and I lost it. Spent much of the day blindly looking for the deer without luck, probably didn't hit it well. It always sucks to wound an animal. Tuesday and Wed. were pretty uneventful in the woods.

As for fishing.

Thurs. -- Most everything blown out. I ended up on 12 mile, which was fishable. Very windy, you just lifted the rod, flew the line like a kite, then tried to work it down to the water. Did pretty well, considering the situation. 5 landed. There were maybe 10-15 guys there at any given time.

Fri -- Elk in perfect condition, but this just wasn't my day for some reason. Hooked 2, landed 0. Fished 4 different locations and only saw a total of 4 other fishermen, most of them had caught a couple but noone cleaned up.

Sat. -- Streams MUCH more crowded. Started on Elk at daylight at the Legion, I caught 1 and JayL caught, I think, 3. We then moved up to Steretania to join the other guys, and did pretty well up there. Yes, my final tally was 7 fair hooked fish landed on the day, including the one at the legion.

It was great to meet everyone that I haven't met before, and for JayL's group, it was good to see you again. Lookin forward to the jam.

 

[troutslammer]

fished a mile stream today , including myself there was 4 people in the pobably 2 miles of streams i fished , egg patterns and nymphs were the ticket , they were hot as fire today and water was perfect , some runs were on clear side. my arms and lower back are still aching...lol

 

[jayL]

Great trip.

Pcray covered saturday morning. I hooked a good number at sterretania, but landed fewer than I would have wished. Overall, I ended up with 7 or 8 landed. As was mentioned earlier, I was having greatest success with peach. Angora sucker spawn was the best variation.

Today saw lower and clear conditions, as well as some cold temps. The fish were definitely less active. We started below the legion, and it was a mob scene. We hooked a few before deciding to check walnut out... mainly because it beat going home. We caught a handful there, but it was packed with people, and the fish were on high alert with the low conditions. Once the wind picked up, we decided to make the trek back. Looks like the east side would have been better, based on troutslammer's post. We didn't feel like adding any more time to our already long drive, so we decided against checking that area out. Live and learn.

I'm tired, but I'll get the pics up tomorrow.

Great to see everyone.

 

[Acristickid]

Looks like you guys had a good time.

 

[pcray1231]

For the record, throughout my days up there I tried nymphs and had a hit or two, I also tried white and black buggers, but all my fish were caught on egg patterns of some sort. I caught fish on white blood dots, pink blood dots, peach sucker spawn, and scrambled eggs (orange and chartreuse).

Great pics David, lookin forward to seeing JayL's.

 

[Millertime]

I will second JayL's tactics. . .

Egg Colored/ with a Salmon dot. (looks like a mini peach) they were working for me Saturday on lower elk. I hooked 5 in one hole on them.

I have a secret hole that everyone walks by and no one fishes. except me.


Sorry me and Goldenfly missed you guys. Hopefully we can get together soon.



PS . . .

Alby are you fish juggler??? that looks like an amzing move you are pulling??

 

[David]

Millertime wrote:

PS . . .

Alby are you fish juggler??? that looks like an amzing move you are pulling??

Alby was wearing a tailing glove. Once he touches them, they don't get away! It worked great!
Hey Alby...how 'bout a product review on that?

 

[ryguyfi]

Millertime wrote:
I will second JayL's tactics. . .

Egg Colored/ with a Salmon dot. (looks like a mini peach) they were working for me Saturday on lower elk. I hooked 5 in one hole on them.

Where in the world did you get the idea for that color combo??? :roll:



Sorry I missed all the fun. I'm headed up this weekend, or next, or maybe both. Looks like a good crew up there. Tailing a fish is an art, and Alby's "glove" looks like it did the trick. Looks like the true steelhead season started this past week... ice on the guides, snow on the ground, and less crouds. I need to bring one or two home for the smoker, so we'll see how the next few weeks pan out.


Ryan

 

[goodfortune]

Hey guys; I made it home in one piece 🙂.

It was a pleasure fishing with you all again. I learned that:

- Fishing in winter really isn't that bad...and this is from someone that has lived all but the last 2-1/2 years in warmer climates. Be sure to wear layers, with moisture-wicking materials, and you will be surprisingly comfortable as long as you keep moving.

- Bald Eagles are cool 😎

- If you have to drive during winter storm conditions, BE CAREFUL OUT THERE!!! Don't think twice about stopping for awhile, or even finding a place for the night if you need to.

albatross wrote: David, love the snow shot, maybe it'll make next year's calendar? I'll add my gratitude for getting us home safe through the snow. GoodFortune, chime in and let us know you made it home safe. We tried calling after the blizard died down, but the call went straight to your VM. It was nice to fish with you again. This photo doesn't do him justice, but Bruno makes a great elf! I had a nice day out with good friends, and caught a few fish too! I enjoyed meeting PCray and JayL's gang. I'll be armed with fresh tippet for my next trip, hopefully over Christmas break.

 

[Squaretail]

And yet another nice PAFF gathering.

 

[jayL]

Here are my pics.

I took one of my biggest steelhead, one of pcray with a nice one, and a few of others fighting fish.

Also, I'll add in a pic of a cool domestic rainbow from the salmon river. I forgot to post that before, but it's a neat looking fish.

 

[troutslammer]

small nymphs work really well in gin clear water with a royal wulf as a indie , 6lb seagar , yellow eggs with blood dots crushed them in the morning , on 2x tippet , then sun cam out and went to 4x , fish were hugging the banks big time , they are getting smart , i don't know how many people i see walk by a clear run and they don't see fish and they walk by it , they aren't looking 4" from the bank though especially when the bank is under cut a little , even if the water is only 6" deep they are usually there. i usually wait for people to drive them like deer into the run i fishing from upstream or down its funny !!!!

 

[MapleSteely]

Enjoy the reports - and felt I would chime in. Was out Dec 1, 2, 3 (at Sixteen mile) and the 4th at Elk - all great days with good flows and (as usual!) incredible fishing. Dec 2 was the best day for me in terms of numbers on Elk, although the fish I hooked into on Dec 3 out of Sixteen mile creek were unbelievable battles.

Good time as always when I manage my weekly trips up to PA in the fall, and met some very nice sportsmen as well. Dec 2 - as the water level fell - switching to smaller offerings of size 12 and 14 Prince Nymphs and Bead head caddis flies turned them around.

Agree with the post about a hole going unnoticed - I had a similar small area that most guys walked past (or through!) - that was a real honey for a good 8-10 hookups to keep things interesting in the late morning just when the action appeared to be dropping. The beauty of that one hole was it seemed every time one was hooked, no one was around - so the hookups and subsequent battles were on with no real witnesses (or worries)!

Below are a few of the fish taken on the second of Dec - kinda tough to use the self timer on the camera as I usually fish alone - but think a few of the pics came out all right and hope I posted these right (?).

Steely at daybreak: (knew it would be a good day when you have several hookups before I have a break off and can't retie due to lack of sun!)

Fish in mid-morning:

Another morning chromer:

Early afternoon steel:

Plump female with new Ross Reel:

Didn't want the day to end - 3:30 PM fish:

One taken near the Hemlock steamside:

Male landed around 4:15 PM but pic quality was poor
(never fails - biggest one and the worst shot):

 

[pcray1231]

Great pics Jay and Maple.

 

[albatross]

David wrote

Alby was wearing a tailing glove. Once he touches them, they don't get away! It worked great!

I'll write a review, but I'll need to go out in the garage and look at the tag on the landing mit to give proper credit to the manufacturer. Maybe tomorrow night. I bought it at BAC in Erie. If you ask them about a mesh landing mit/glove they will steer you to this product.

Nice pics Jay and Maple!

Goodfortune reminds me I had two bald eagle sightings on Saturday. They know an easy meal when they find one! Pretty cool to see them along the stream. It would be really cool to see one going in for the kill on a big steelhead.