Spring Creek, Centre County, 11/30/08

jayL

jayL

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Jan 2, 2007
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I left the Albatross house last night and drove to Bellefonte with plans to fish Spring today before I went home. I'm sure glad I did. Breaking the drive up was a huge help, plus the fishing was good.

I started at the first PAFBC parking lot upstream of the 550 bridge near Bellefonte. The water was low and clear, but I managed to nymph up a few on a scud/junk fly tandem. I think I hooked 4 and landed 2 in about an hour and a half. It was raining hard, and was pretty cold, so I decided to pack it in. On the way out, I couldn't resist taking a peek at Benner. I didn't plan to fish, but before I knew it, I was wading away from the car. The water was so low and clear that I couldn't really spend much time wading, so I took to sight fishing from the banks.

After a few minutes, I spotted, hooked, and landed the monster brown below. I'm no acristickid, so the pictures are blurry.

When I hooked the fish, he gave me three or four good headshakes, and threw up what looked to be a 6 or 7 inch brown. It was half digested, so it might have been a chub. Either way, this fish is straight out of a nightmare scenario. It looks like an alligator. The rod is a 9ft orvis TLS, and the reel is an okuma sierra 4/5, if you'd like to try to make an estimate.
 
See Jay, I knew you'd get into some big browns on this trip, just expected it to be in an Erie trib!
That is one nice fish. Look at how black it's gums are...that's one war-ready fish.
 
Wow Jay, that brown looks as big as the smaller steelhead you caught the day before. Congratulations!

I guess your post is evidence you made it home alive. I was a little concerned about your drive home today with the bad weather in North Central PA.
 
I should add that I saw quite a few redds and gravel beds in the tailouts of the pools, so be careful if you head up there. Sticking to the banks both kept me out of the fertilized eggs and fry, and scored me that fish.
 
Hi Jay - Check your PM's.....Ed :-D
 
Awesome fish! That's one fine piece of angling any way you look at it. Showing due respect for the stream makes it even more impressive. Kudos to JayL. :-D
 
Ahhhhh...looks photoshopped to me... :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D :-D


and one more to avoid confusion :-D
 
Thanks guys.

Ya like the blur effect, Tom?

I laughed when I looked at the pic later that day. Since I laid the rod across the fish in my hurry to take a pic, I figured I'd either get praise for my alleged 'shop skills, or people would have to believe that I caught the damn thing.

:-D
 
That's a nice hog brown Benner no doubt has some in there ive caught my share of nice browns down to the rockview lands
 
Can anyone comment on the sulphur hatch in the Benner Springs stretch? Is it as strong as it is on other stream sections?
 
VTPAangler wrote:
Can anyone comment on the sulphur hatch in the Benner Springs stretch? Is it as strong as it is on other stream sections?
Click to expand...


I fished it in high water last year and did well.
 
How does one access the Benner Springs stretch of Spring? I have been to the hatchery off 220, but I was wondering where you are allowed to fish, where it is worth fishing, and where you can park. Any information would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks
 
The road that goes to the hatchery has parking at the bottom of the hill. You can fish downstream to the posted Rockview land or upstream, I am not sure for how far.
 
Ive never fished above the bridge up stream at Benner Ive always fished downstream how is the fishing above the bridge up thru?
 
The fishing above the bridge is good and it is actually not as wide as below the bridge. Also, it is usually the less crowded of the two sides.
 
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