Lehigh RiverCarbon County, 3/19/ 2012

Those are some great pics. We were there briefly last fall but I didn't get to do any fishing (only biking with the wife)... Is the bridge by that old tunnel a good spot to wade in?
 
SBecker wrote:
Amazing pictures. No fishys?
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No fishies. My first-time trips to streams this year are not going well. I suck.

Thankfully, I've been able to make hay on the home waters.

I should have spent more time streamer fishing. I find it very hard to break out of nymphing when I'm not catching fish.

With the conditions, I found myself spending more time just soaking up how nice it was down in the gorge, rather than spending time getting pissed off about the W-I-N-D.

Still, I should meet up with one of you and fish that river some time. It seems like it could be a blast.

Tried my luck at Glen Ono, Packerton Yards, and where the Pohopoco comes in (though I didn't find much water to fish there).
 
m0nk wrote:
Those are some great pics. We were there briefly last fall but I didn't get to do any fishing (only biking with the wife)... Is the bridge by that old tunnel a good spot to wade in?
Click to expand...

I was having a hard time, BUT that's specifically because -- for the 4th week in a row -- I forgot to stud my replacement boots from Simms. So I was slipping around like an idiot the whole day. The river is getting a lot of sun, so there was algae everywhere, and it's a miracle I didn't break an ankle considering how I insisted on persisting with wading I shouldn't have been doing.

Otherwise, yeah, it was fine in these flows. You can't get too far out, but you can get out far enough to work all the water you'd likely want to. I'll likely head back there next time.
 
Excellent, thanks. We were there twice last year, went rafting once and biking the next time, so if we go back soon, I HAVE to get some fishing in this time. But it's nice that my wife loves Jim Thorpe and won't balk at "having" to go back.

:-D
 
The Lehigh is the toughest river to wade between here and Maine. Just wait until the flows go up . I'm not a big proponent of the latest fad in nymphing, I do just fine with my antiquated methods.
 
I headed out to the river on Saturday. I took the bike out and fished above Rockport/below Sandy Run. I thought one fish would be an accomplishment given the size of this river and being my first time in this stretch. I found an awesome BWO hatch and cooperative fish in relatively short order. I nailed 2 nice browns right away, but it felt like these were the dummies of the group. I started out with a #12 comparadun which was closest to the naturals but these were soon ignored. Problem is I didn't have the right size BWO's, a size #18 is the biggest I use on my homewaters and these are more like #14. Anywho, I managed 1 more brown on lighter tippet (5x)/smaller fly...not really used to the fish being too picky on this river, maybe the low/clear water has something to do with it. The hatch died out and I went exploring. I nymphed around a bit but didn't get any more action.
I'm glad to get into some nice fish, these river bred fish really put up a fight. It was raining off/on all day and I think that really helped bring the fish out. Seems like every time I float the river, it ends up being a blue bird day and the fishing sucks until the suns starts to set. I'm glad I have the bike now for a quick get away on a rainy and otherwise crappy day.
What a great place to explore and enjoy the scenery. I'm pretty sure I can get my GF into biking the trails up there as well, so that's a win-win...

My camera ended up getting wet but it seems to have recovered...I'll try to get some pics up soon
 
Not as high as it could be but enough to keep me coming back, based on my thoroughly unscientific observations. As a mixed use tailwater its focus is recreational but not as a wholly sustainable fishery. I'm sure it's a complex puzzle and I'm just a single fisherman looking for a good time.
 
How strong are the fish populations?
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Greenlander

I think trout populations fluctuate year to year. Cool and rainy summers will yeild good populations the following spring & summer. Dry/warm summers = some mortality and lower numbers of trout that remain.

The majority of the trout you will catch will be stocked fish...either fingerling grown ups, holdover or freshly stocked adult trout. There is a low-fair population of wild trout which populate the river from the numerous coldwater/Class A tributaries that enter the river.

We will need some rain soon to mainatin the rivers temperatures and flows, but i would think this will be a good spring season to fish the Lehigh. The Corps will be cutting the release back to 200 cfs in the next few days to begin storing for the summer recreational season. That should keep the river very angler friendly and there will be lots of water to explore!

 
There was some discussion on where the river is opened.
I called NE PFBC Law Enforcement Office twice and both persons said only Rockport down to Lehington is opened. I could not find this information published anywhere and they did not know if it is published - the lady I talked to last said "I just have it written here in my notebook". :-?
 
Well, vdragan I can tell you that you got bad intel from the PFBC. I have no clue where the people you talked to came up with Rockport or Lehighton. Obviously they were speaking in general terms, since the PFBC does not designate stream sections by town names - but nonetheless they are mis-informed.

As I've stated before, the Lehigh is open to C&R of trout below Sandy Run during the closed seasons.

Regardless, here is the real deal on where you can fish the Lehigh - this info has come from one of the biologists for the area.

-----
Section 06 (FEW to Sandy Run) is in the Approved Trout Water program and as such is currently closed till the Traditional Opening Day (April 14).

Section 07 (Sandy Run down to relic dam above Palmerton) is not in this program. Since Lizard Creek and Mahoning Creek are in the program that open under the Early Opening Day (March 31), downstream of Mahoning Creek in the Lehigh River mainstem, anglers may harvest trout on Early Opening Day and after. Prior to the Early Opening Day, catch and release only for the entire section 07.
-------

Simple enough.
 
VC, I trust you have good info, but wouldn't it be nice if the rules were clearly spelled out in the PBFC summary regulations? The guy checking me on the stream won't be you, but the person I talked to on the phone.
He mentioned that in general the ATW downstream waters are not opened, but that section is an exception.
Thanks for the effort to clear this out, but if it's not from an official publication it won't have much value if confronted by a rogue CWO (not that may even happen)...
 
There's nothing official telling you can't fish it...other than someone saying in their "notes". Maybe those notes should be made public??

VC has discussed this with the PFBC to make this more public knowledge. Time will tell how and when this happens.

Scott Christman is the local WCO...he has given me the same info as the local PFBC biologist gave to VC.

I think you are safe.
 
vdragan wrote:
VC, I trust you have good info, but wouldn't it be nice if the rules were clearly spelled out in the PBFC summary regulations? The guy checking me on the stream won't be you, but the person I talked to on the phone.
He mentioned that in general the ATW downstream waters are not opened, but that section is an exception.
Thanks for the effort to clear this out, but if it's not from an official publication it won't have much value if confronted by a rogue CWO (not that may even happen)...
Click to expand...

It is spelled out in the regs (attached below). If you're worried you could print them out and bring with.
I would appreciate getting checked, at least you'd have some company...it can get lonely out there


CARBON
Aquashicola Creek – Buckwha Creek – Drakes Creek – Francis E. Walter Reservoir (Bear Creek Reservoir) – Hickory Run (outlet of Hickory Run Lake downstream to Saylorsville Dam) – Hickory Run Lake – Lehigh Canal (Long Run Level near Weissport) – Lehigh River (Carbon-Luzerne county line from outlet of FE Walter Reservoir downstream to confluence with Sandy Run) – Mauch Chunk Creek (outlet Mauch Chunk Lake downstream to Mauch Chunk Reservoir) – Nesquehoning Creek – Pohopoco Creek (outlet of Beltzville Lake downstream to backwater of Parryville Dam) – Sand Spring Run


 
Thanks Lehigh.

Phil, yes, that is spelled out, as it is that the ATW and downstream waters are closed during the offseason.
 
Ok, to finally put this to rest, I've called the PFBC headquarters in Harrisburg; talked to Jeff Bridi, assistant director of the PFBC’s Bureau of Law Enforcement
Interestingly, the implicit rule "all waters downstream of ATW are closed" does not apply when a stream is listed with boundaries. You can fish outside the limits up or downstream.
e.g. Lehigh River (Carbon-Luzerne county line from outlet of FE Walter Reservoir downstream to confluence with Sandy Run)

So, the Lehigh is not a special case, all waters listed with boundaries follow that rule.
He agreed the booklet can be made clearer and they are working on that every year. He also confirmed the rules apply to sections, not town names (as VC said).

It seems the Law Enforcement NE office has some catch-up to do, good to know the guy on field (Scott) is up to date.

Thanks for the helpful feedback!
 
Nice work! Glad you finally got a legit answer. Now get out there and fish. I'm hearing nothing but fantastic fishing reports!

 
Vio-

I used to work with Scott (WCO), just tell him you know me if he stops you 😉 (You'll probably get another ticket!)
 
Will fish it for the first time since the good reports on Sunday. Plan on hitting it in the "dry fly areas". If anybody is interested in fishing it with my cousin and I shoot me a Pm. Should be a good time searching for the feeding heads.
 
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