Penns Creek Stream Report – Centre & Union Counties, May 26–27, 2025
May has been a very rainy month overall, with well above-average rainfall. The creek finally dropped to a level that was low and clear enough to be worth fishing. The previous couple of weeks were pretty cold, and many hatches were affected by the high, off-color water. Green Drakes began appearing above Glen Iron on May 20. At that time, Penns was running at 1100 CFS, but another rain event quickly pushed it up to 1800 CFS and turned it off-color again. Water temperatures hovered around 51°F, and air temps during this period barely reached 60°F. As conditions improved, more insects began to emerge, though there were no stellar hatches during the day or evening. Spinner falls were visible in the evenings. I’ve been staying along Penns Creek for the month and have kept a close watch on conditions below Weikert.Caddie helping me with the stream assessment
May 26: Below Weikert (5:00–8:45 PM)
I initially tried to fish upstream above Cherry Run, but the area was packed on Memorial Day—everyone and their brother was out. With Green Drakes hatching and the water improving, the crowd was no surprise. I returned to a stocked section near where I was staying and found an open stretch to fish by myself.Air temps were around 61°F with mostly sunny skies and a light breeze. The creek had a green tint with about 24” of visibility and was flowing at 820 CFS. Water temps were around 53°F.
There were some Green Drakes and Sulphurs coming off—just enough to keep things interesting. Activity picked up after 8:15, with Coffin Flies and spinners starting to show in better numbers.
I worked a stretch of bumpy water that had a soft-side channel, allowing me to wade in waist-deep without getting tossed around. I covered it pretty thoroughly with nymphs, Woolly Buggers, stoneflies, and dry flies—nothing. I was freezing and about to call it a night when I spotted a slow, flat section about 40 yards downstream. I gave it one last look and saw three rising fish. That was all the encouragement I needed.
I tied on a large #8 Rusty Spinner and waded across in crotch-deep water. (Lord, I hate the rocks on Penns.) As more risers appeared, I started casting—and got into some great fish. I landed about seven, including a gorgeous 20” wild brown hen. I knew it was big as soon as I set the hook—it gave that hard, heavy tug back. A great fight. I also caught a few other browns and a solid 15” rainbow. That one fish made up for the whole month of limited opportunities.
May 27: Below Coburn with Coty and Steve (4:30–8:45 PM)
The next night, I met up with Coty and Steve in Coburn and we fished below town. We were on the water from about 4:30 to 8:45. Air temps had warmed to 68°F during the drive over. It was overcast, but thankfully dry. The water was clearing up, temps were around 53–54°F, and levels had dropped to 770 CFS—the lowest since May 2. We even had a Tim Robinson sighting on the road down.The hatches were phenomenal that evening. Green Drakes were consistently coming off, joined by Sulphurs and Caddis. I’m sure other mayflies were present, but those three stole the show. Things slowed around 7:00, then picked up again with a heavy wave of caddis. Around 7:45, spinner activity began, featuring lots of Coffin Flies and an overwhelming number of #18 yellow spinners—clouds of them, more than I’ve ever seen. It was classic Penns Creek: a full-on insect soup.
We returned to a familiar stretch that looked a bit different with the higher water. We had to climb down into knee-deep water right off the bank. Coty got into fish quickly with a drake pattern. We all worked the surface with mostly drakes and did pretty well, depending on our location. I eventually switched to a #8 Rusty Spinner again and closed the night with a few solid fish.
It was a fantastic evening and the first time since May 1 that I truly experienced a classic Penns Creek night. I’ll be wrapping up my stay on the 29th, but this outing was a great way to cap off the month.
