Slippery Rock Creek FFO Project, Lawrence Co, 5-31-2025

[Prospector]

Time Fished: 1000am - 1115am

Weather Conditions: 52 degrees, Cloudy

Water Conditions: Water was truly bank to bank, Very Cloudy, 586 cfs,

Insects: none

I wanted to fish this stretch today since I knew the stream would be up but it was at the edge of un-fishable. I only had 75 minutes to fish so I made 3 passes in the best water.

First pass was with a yellow Maribou streamer. It caught a brown and another fish short striked.

Second pass was with a weighted black matuka. The fish that short had striked earlier grabbed this fly but I missed him.

I finished with a heavily weighted sz 6 black woolly bugger and it eventually snagged and I packed it in.

This half mile of FFO was a popular spot at one time when Fly Fishing was getting some momentum in the mid 70s. It was easy to get to from Pittsburgh up I79 as well as the Route 422 corridor from New Castle to Kittanning. The “Do Fly Fish Club” in New Castle took it on as its pet project to get this section approved. Mike Wheale, who later became the Waterways Patrolman for Allegheny County, was a club member at the time. There are only a few people left that were involved in this club. The fly tying school held at Shenango High School, the Co-op nursery, the annual trout derby and stream cleanups are history, but the Slippery Rock FFO is a lasting reminder of the good work they did.

 

[td566]

I enjoyed your report. I moved to SWPA in 2019, and did not know about the history of the FFO stretch. Thanks for sharing.
I have yet to fish the creek for trout or bass, but hope to try it this year. Two years ago I came upon a group of about a dozen people who were attending a fly fishing class. I didn’t want to interrupt the session so I chose not to fish that day.

 

[Bonzoso]

I used to fish this stream back in the 70's. As you said it was a rather quick drive up I-79 from my place in the South Hills at the time. Used to do ok for a hack. The scenery was great and it was never very crowded after the opening day crowds left. I remember being amazed at a small tributary that fed the stream when I fished it in the dead of summer one year, going for bass. There were probably 30 trout just stacked up in a small hole at the mouth of that tributary. Fond memories but haven't been out that way to fish in decades.

 

[dryflyguy]

I used to fish this stream back in the 70's. As you said it was a rather quick drive up I-79 from my place in the South Hills at the time. Used to do ok for a hack. The scenery was great and it was never very crowded after the opening day crowds left. I remember being amazed at a small tributary that fed the stream when I fished it in the dead of summer one year, going for bass. There were probably 30 trout just stacked up in a small hole at the mouth of that tributary. Fond memories but haven't been out that way to fish in decades.

Those trout are probably stacked up there now too

 

[Prospector]

I used to fish this stream back in the 70's. As you said it was a rather quick drive up I-79 from my place in the South Hills at the time. Used to do ok for a hack. The scenery was great and it was never very crowded after the opening day crowds left. I remember being amazed at a small tributary that fed the stream when I fished it in the dead of summer one year, going for bass. There were probably 30 trout just stacked up in a small hole at the mouth of that tributary. Fond memories but haven't been out that way to fish in decades.

There is a cold water source above the bridge (same side as parking lot) and another cold water source below the bridge opposite the parking lot. The feeder stream below held more fish. Last time I checked it, there were no trout there. I imagine I checked it too late into June.