Letort Run, Cumberland County, 5/28/22

Letort

Letort

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 14, 2008
Messages
489
City
Carlisle
Air temp -77*, partly sunny
water temp - 62*
Water clarity - slightly tinted, but good visibility
Tme.- 7:30 pm, fished 1.5 hours

Was hoping to see a tail end of the sulphur hatch, but only saw 1-2.doz sulphur in the air, at the very most. Saw 3-4 splashy rises, so thought they might be going after Emergers. Had a sulphur dry on that I liked for size and color, but didn’t get a sniff.

I will concede that the Letort has my number and I probably need to get a local guide to help me dial it in. But based on what I saw, probably time to drop the sulphur watch and get ready for terrestrials and tricos.
 
You are lucky to be able to walk that beautiful area - the Letort is just special and so many have tried to protect her as much as possible. Too long a drive for me, so I walk it every so often.
If you can, get a copy of an article called "The Real Letort" ( maybe, I am working from memory here).
Basically, it is really about sight fishing, patience, and small wets - #20 wet ants, scuds, hares ear.
An acquaintance of mine lived there and loved to spend afternoons and evenings there - lucky him. He agreed - except for some isolated sulphur dry activity , it was patience and waiting and small wet action...
Enjoy...
 
Letort said:
Air temp -77*, partly sunny
water temp - 62*
Water clarity - slightly tinted, but good visibility
Tme.- 7:30 pm, fished 1.5 hours

Was hoping to see a tail end of the sulphur hatch, but only saw 1-2.doz sulphur in the air, at the very most. Saw 3-4 splashy rises, so thought they might be going after Emergers. Had a sulphur dry on that I liked for size and color, but didn’t get a sniff.

I will concede that the Letort has my number and I probably need to get a local guide to help me dial it in. But based on what I saw, probably time to drop the sulphur watch and get ready for terrestrials and tricos.
Click to expand...
Style of nymphing for the letort is “far and fine” either french/spanish contact nymphing, rothrock leader greased up really good looking at sighter and presented from a distance , or New Zealand wool with cress-bug underneath. Im not an expert on letort but Thats how i catch small to medium sized fish there.
 
Caught on May 13th. 18 - 19" er. behind the Kitchen Shoppe store. on a very large black cone head wooly bugger. netted, very quick picture, revived for a good time ... then he shot off like a bulldog.

This fish hasn't eaten a 'lil bitty bug in years. the big ones want meat. swing a big streamer through those cress channels .... and be ready and hold on!!
 

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Absolutely! that's a keen skill you have - I've been left there shaking my head most many times. one of the hardest streams I've ever fished. one time many moons ago .. right in front of the "mailbox" ... I saw a dark shape finning above the cress in a seam. I drifted a #18 cress bug by him . all I could see was it moved to the right .. I lifted up .. fish on. and he blasted upstream like a cannon shot - pop - gone. i was literally shaking. Your success on small flies ... that must be a thrill - it's got to be 100% intensity. I really love that about our sport.
 
I took a 20-incher on a cress bug several years ago, while sight fishing. It was a blast. I live about 3 hours away and don't get there much.
 
The last time I was at Letort, I fell in and broke my rod, lost a brodin net, and didn't get a stinking hit. Haven't been back since.
 
Mashbill said:
Caught on May 13th. 18 - 19" er. behind the Kitchen Shoppe store. on a very large black cone head wooly bugger. netted, very quick picture, revived for a good time ... then he shot off like a bulldog.

This fish hasn't eaten a 'lil bitty bug in years. the big ones want meat. swing a big streamer through those cress channels .... and be ready and hold on!!
Click to expand...
The big ones in the main stem of the Delaware were more than happy to sip #20 spinners in the film on Monday evening. Big fish only eating “meat” is a fallacy.
 
With about 10,000 years of fishing the Letort under my belt, Sulphurs can come of sporadically into July but the operative word is SPORADICALLY.

The best fishing I had this late was LATE, meaning dusk to dark/dark. (21:00 - 23:00).

It used to be an inside joke to Letort bums like me when the "Limestone Springs Wild Trout Water" regs required an angler to be OFF the water at dusk.

FWIW - When it was pitch black, I took more than a few fish on Letort Crickets or other "splashy" landing offerings.
 
Fishing after dark best way to fish browns if you know the water in my opinion. Their retinas are just so light sensitive, think cone cells can detect down to .003 lumens.
 
Letort said:
Air temp -77*, partly sunny
water temp - 62*
Water clarity - slightly tinted, but good visibility
Tme.- 7:30 pm, fished 1.5 hours

Was hoping to see a tail end of the sulphur hatch, but only saw 1-2.doz sulphur in the air, at the very most. Saw 3-4 splashy rises, so thought they might be going after Emergers. Had a sulphur dry on that I liked for size and color, but didn’t get a sniff.

I will concede that the Letort has my number and I probably need to get a local guide to help me dial it in. But based on what I saw, probably time to drop the sulphur watch and get ready for terrestrials and tricos.
Click to expand...
Where did you fish it? I'm from Gettysburg and would gladly take you sometime. Stealth and small flies during the day, id say its mighty fine time to use terrestrials there, dry dropper gets the work done there. I almost only nymph and streamer fish there. I have lead several friends to fish there.
 
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