Sinnemahoning Portage Creek and Driftwood Branch of the Sinnemahoning, Cameron County, 05/09/2009

[albatross]

I fished Sinnemahoning Portage Creek for the first time today. Flow was a little higher than normal and the water was slightly stained -- excellent conditions. I caught a few stocked brooks and browns on nymphs and junk flies underneath. I saw a couple fish rising to a sporadic caddis hatch. I didn't fish the class A section. I think this stream is recovering nicely from the train wreck a few years ago.

On the way back, I couldn't resist wetting a line in the Driftwwod Branch. I nymphed for about an hour without even a hit. I decided to try a new streamer pattern before I left, the WMD (link). On the third cast I had a massive hit. A long battle ensued and I began to wonder what was on the end of my line as I had yet to see the fish. Finally I brought the beautiful 18 inch brown pictured below to hand. This fish is likely a holdover, perhaps wild, but definitely not a stocker from this Spring.

The big brown also gave my new Redington CPX 4 weight a good workout, but the rod was up to the task.

 

[littlejuniata]

Beautiful fish

 

[David]

Glad to hear the effects of the spill are diminishing already.
Sounds like a good day out...beautiful fish. I'll definitely have to give that rod an "evaluation" test on the stream sometime ;-)

 

[Squaretail]

Sheeesh.

"All right Mr. Yothers, step away from the flyrod and come out with your hands up!"

 

[dryflyguy]

Nice fish alby
Kinda hard to believe that stream was completely killed off a few years ago
Have you ever fished the fly fishing section of the driftwood branch upstream of Emporium - at the fairgrounds?
I used to fish it years ago on way up to, and back from Kettle Creek. It had some nice hatches and wild trout, and wasn't affected by the derailment spill

 

[albatross]

DFG,
My first outing of the new year was Jan 2nd on the FFO section. Never saw a fish and got skunked, but it was really cold.

 

[albatross]

On a somewhat related note, there is a neverending caravan of huge trucks hauling water to the Marsellus Shale gas well drill site near my parents house in Cameron County. They are buying the water at $.02 per gallon from the local water authority and hauling it in to frack the well.

 

[Acristickid]

Nice Brown.

 

[Fishidiot]

Alby,
Nice report and heckuva nice fish.