Letort Spring Run, Cumberland County, 4/3/25

Mikey2006 said:
Maybe I’m not not used to seeing big wild brown trout. This was my first (potentially) wild brown over 17 inches so I guess I had expected the bigger fish to look like the smaller ones. And the few wild trout I have caught in the Letort that do not have any red on them all had a very sparse spot pattern, whereas this fish has a bunch of smaller tightly packed spots that reminded me of your average stocked brown.

My assumption that this fish has hatchery origins came from the fact that other fisherman I’ve encountered on the stream said they had caught holdovers in the area. I was told they swam down from Letort park where they stock for a kids derby. That’s a decent distance to travel, but this fish, if stocked, has obviously been in the stream for quite a long time and would likely move about.

I used to be under the assumption that every brown I caught in the lower Letort was wild, but I reconsidered when some people told me this brown (caught about 200 yards downstream from where the 21.5” fish was caught) was not wild. I dismissed it at first but after looking at how worn the underside of its tail was and noticing the absence of red spots, I thought that it might be a hatchery fish. So I guess some opinions on this one as well would be appreciated.
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I guess the idea that I somehow caught a true 20+ inch wild brown seems too good to be true. I’d rather call the fish stocked if I’m not 100% sure just to be safe. And if anything that gives me more of a reason to keep chasing big ones since it leaves my goal of catching a 20 unaccomplished.
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The big brown in this last pic might just be a wild fish. If it isn't, it's still a great brown trout!
 
This is one of Ed Shenk's big Letort Browns...

Ed Shenk's Big Brown.jpg
 
Mikey2006 said:
There was a small amount of red on the underside of its tail, but not enough to show in the pictures I took. It’s fins were in pristine condition but it just looks so dull and drab that I was hesitant to call it wild, especially since I’ve heard of people catching holdovers in the section I was fishing. But who knows.

I’m probably going to end up going to Juniata College this fall. Being that close to a great fishery will probably not go well for my grades 😂
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Class of ‘87. Juniata is gonna treat you well. As will the fishing.
 
Mikey2006 said:
Maybe I’m not not used to seeing big wild brown trout. This was my first (potentially) wild brown over 17 inches so I guess I had expected the bigger fish to look like the smaller ones. And the few wild trout I have caught in the Letort that do not have any red on them all had a very sparse spot pattern, whereas this fish has a bunch of smaller tightly packed spots that reminded me of your average stocked brown.

My assumption that this fish has hatchery origins came from the fact that other fisherman I’ve encountered on the stream said they had caught holdovers in the area. I was told they swam down from Letort park where they stock for a kids derby. That’s a decent distance to travel, but this fish, if stocked, has obviously been in the stream for quite a long time and would likely move about.

I used to be under the assumption that every brown I caught in the lower Letort was wild, but I reconsidered when some people told me this brown (caught about 200 yards downstream from where the 21.5” fish was caught) was not wild. I dismissed it at first but after looking at how worn the underside of its tail was and noticing the absence of red spots, I thought that it might be a hatchery fish. So I guess some opinions on this one as well would be appreciated.
View attachment 1641241194View attachment 1641241195
I guess the idea that I somehow caught a true 20+ inch wild brown seems too good to be true. I’d rather call the fish stocked if I’m not 100% sure just to be safe. And if anything that gives me more of a reason to keep chasing big ones since it leaves my goal of catching a 20 unaccomplished.
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Hey Guy-
I used to live in Carlisle and fished the Letort for the better part of 20 years so I know a thing or two there. The trout stocked in the Letort Park for the kids derby are all rainbows and banana trout ..no browns. Your fish are wild so pat yourself on the back. Nicely done 🤙
 
Mikey2006 said:
It really was an amazing experience. Wild or not, it had my legs shaking so bad that I could barely stand. It was especially rewarding since I’ve put in a ton of hours over the past few months without any real success on the lower Letort searching for fish just like this one. Literally everytime it rains I try to make it up there as soon as I can.
I’m pretty sure I had this same fish bite last December, and a few weeks after that I had one of similar size foul hooked for a few minutes before it ultimately got away. I got a glimpse of it, and it looked pretty damn similar to the one I just caught. I’m pretty sure I’ve been chasing the same fish for these past few months, which made catching it even better.
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That’s what keeps you coming back, bud! Great fish.
 
I do not believe they have stocked for the kids derby in many years (there is a story behind it).

That's a wild brown and consistent color of many in that stream. I suspect I know where you caught him, if it is the same fish. He has outsmarted me too many times (granted, a rather low threshold).

I spend a lot of time on the Letort (see my screen name) and if its a beautiful day, I don't even bother.
 
Letort said:
I do not believe they have stocked for the kids derby in many years (there is a story behind it).

That's a wild brown and consistent color of many in that stream. I suspect I know where you caught him, if it is the same fish. He has outsmarted me too many times (granted, a rather low threshold).

I spend a lot of time on the Letort (see my screen name) and if its a beautiful day, I don't even bother.
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It may or may not have been behind the porn shop 😂
 
I think those are both wild browns. From their appearance and also because it's not a stocked stream, other than a few that may be stocked in the park.

So, the great majority of brown trout in the Letort are wild.

So, the great majority of browns you catch will be wild, just going on probabilities.

Many people talk about "holdovers." But they are uncommon. They exist more in peoples' minds than in the streams.
 
Mikey2006 said:
It may or may not have been behind the porn shop 😂
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That is a great spot! Many fond memories there (fishing). Was always interesting watching the clientele *** and go there when the shop was open. All types frequented that place including your secretive neighbor 🤣 You should try night fishing the Letort sometime to really get a taste of what's hiding under the banks during the day.
 
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Wild_Trouter said:
That is a great spot! Many fond memories there (fishing). Was always interesting watching the clientele *** and go there when the shop was open. All types frequented that place including your secretive neighbor 🤣 You should try night fishing the Letort sometime to really get a taste of what's hiding under the banks during the day.
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I’ve been planning on it. Once it warms up a bit more I’ll probably try it, although I’ll start further upstream near the sports emporium and fish up to the turnpike, that way I only have to cross the stream twice and can stay out of the water. I don’t want to be fumbling around that waterfall and the deep hole above it when it’s dark and I can’t see anything
 
Bamboozle said:
Apparently it still happens:

allevents.in

FOE Kids Fishing Derby

Find tickets & information for FOE Kids Fishing Derby. happening at 26 E High St, Carlisle, PA, Carlisle, PA on Fri, 19 Jun, 2026 at 06:00 pm EDT. Register or Buy Tickets, Price information.
allevents.in allevents.in
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Letort said:
I do not believe they have stocked for the kids derby in many years (there is a story behind it).
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Can you share that story? Sounds interesting.

The one I was referring to was inside the War College - they used to stock for the kid and residents. A TU member became friends with the base commandant at one point. Commandant mentioned that he was going to stock the run for the College to fish. TU member said, plenty of fish in there - no need to stock. Commandant didn't believe him, so TU member met with Commandant during a hatch, for which the Letort browns were cooperating and he could see for himself how many fish were in there. So, he diverted the money for stocking to other activities. Or so the story goes.
 
Wouldn't be surprised if wild.
I've seen some remarkably unmarked trout come from fishing club raceways and they are fed better, do not have clipped fins or bottoms of tails rubbed to a straight line on a raceway bottom.
And the raceways aren't packed to the maximum.
Spawning season was maybe not long enough ago for the tail to regrow more than displayed, but if the wear of the tail looks like it was bent and used as a hard brush during spawning, then there's part of a tell.
From experience, as an example, the trout that come from a small private hatchery that an area fishing club purchase for stocking, those trout look very colorful and the flesh has some color and better flesh than the regular food fish hatchery raceway trout.
They seem to have better behavior for avoiding people, rather than just hanging in the raceway pod groups. Hatchery trout were deliberately bred for raceway behavior. Wild trout never performed well when the state of Pennsylvania began trying to produce trout for stocking, according to a long dead aquatic biologist I interviewed during the late 1980s. He said that after the flood of 1936 all the wild trout being attempted to be raised in raceway habitat washed out. So, a change was made. They sourced rainbows and other trout from breeders in other states. Rainbows were popular for raceways.

But a 20" wild brown is not out of the ordinary for many streams that have a wild brown trout population but don't get fished much by the general public after Mother's Day. And a food-rich stream like the Letort definitely has more than a little potential.
Finding a wild brown large enough to challenge the state champion will be difficult.
Hatchery raised fish, especially breeders, and some that are grown in private-access only streams can reach the 29-inch or longer size.

My axiom is "You can't catch a big fish if there are no big fish to catch."
Stocked trout can reach those sizes because they don't have to use as much energy compared to food intake.
 
The kids trout derby still lives on. This year it is scheduled for June 21st from 8am-3pm, and is hosted by Fraternal Order of Eagles #1299. I've hear the story about the War College, but this is a completely different event. The story I heard about the War College is that a Colonel did have the War College grounds stocked with trout for his personal pleasure and when they were hosting dignified guests. In the early 90s, there were large rainbows to be had inside the War College. Following the trout derby, some rainbows do holdover within Letort Park and points downstream. If you didn't know better, you'd think they were wild. I've caught my fair share behind Carla's Cleaners, the old Rite Aid, and other spots.
Letort said:

Can you share that story? Sounds interesting.

The one I was referring to was inside the War College - they used to stock for the kid and residents. A TU member became friends with the base commandant at one point. Commandant mentioned that he was going to stock the run for the College to fish. TU member said, plenty of fish in there - no need to stock. Commandant didn't believe him, so TU member met with Commandant during a hatch, for which the Letort browns were cooperating and he could see for himself how many fish were in there. So, he diverted the money for stocking to other activities. Or so the story goes.
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Kids trout derby
 
Wild_Trouter said:
The kids trout derby still lives on. This year it is scheduled for June 21st from 8am-3pm, and is hosted by Fraternal Order of Eagles #1299. I've hear the story about the War College, but this is a completely different event. The story I heard about the War College is that a Colonel did have the War College grounds stocked with trout for his personal pleasure and when they were hosting dignified guests. In the early 90s, there were large rainbows to be had inside the War College. Following the trout derby, some rainbows do holdover within Letort Park and points downstream. If you didn't know better, you'd think they were wild. I've caught my fair share behind Carla's Cleaners, the old Rite Aid, and other spots.

Kids trout derby
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I really need to start branching out and fishing different sections of the Letort. Is fishing still allowed at war college?
 
Mikey2006 said:
I really need to start branching out and fishing different sections of the Letort. Is fishing still allowed at war college?
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Yes. You need to go to the Barracks entrance, state your purpose, and they will do quick visual scan of underside of vehicle (contraband, explosives, etc ) and then they'll tell you where to park. Fishing is very good on base. One of my favorite stretches of the Letort is upstream of bridge crossing on Post Rd- especially when sulphurs are popping, and Summer w/terrestrials. It's also a great section during high water events with streamers. You can fish the Post Rd section all the way to the Barracks property border.
 
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