a Penn's Weekend
Tom Littleton
we lost power in a thunderstorm, just as I hit the "send" button....seemingly
the whole thing was lost, but if it turns out to be sent, sorry for the
redundancy)
Got an urgent email last week from Mr. Shaw, who had heard from the owners of
Hemlock Acres. Apparently, a nasty storm blew through the valley, thoughtlessly
attacking Clave Central....specifically, the awning. We agreed to meet Friday
through Sunday for repairs and fishing. As the week wore on, the work part
seemed less significant, and the suspicion grew(notably, with my dear spouse),
that this was mainly a ruse to get away fishing. Despite the ugly accusations,
I headed out Friday afternoon for Coburn. True enough, the repairs were minor,
and already completely by the Handyman, so fishing was in order.
For those who follow Penn's Creek, you should know that it may well be in the
best summer conditions that I have seen over the past 15 years or so. Water
temp is around 62 degrees, colder in Elk Creek and over in Big Fishing Creek.
Fish are very plentiful in all local streams. A quick fishing report for my
time there follows:
Friday evening: Only had an hour of fishing light left and was hungry. So
were
the trout, but neither of us really figured out a damn thing. Saw plenty of
rises, hooked few, landed nothing
Saturday morning: Over to Big Fishing Creek, to remind ourselves of the
true meaning of "gin-clear" as regards trout water. You could count the
individual strands of elodea in the water, clearly see trout of all sizes, and
probably pick out individual nymphs underwater with decent eyesight. Very
little was hatching but we both caught trout on Adams Midges. Largely, we
terrified fish more than not, under the conditions at hand, so gave up in the
later morning and headed back toward Penn's.
Saturday evening: Off to 3-Streamer Stan's, which we had to ourselves. Bugs
were profuse, with tan Caddis, Mahogany Duns, Sulfurs, Jenny Spinners(males of
the Mahogany Duns) and midges. The big event was the constant flow of big
Yellow Drakes, which turned out not to be Yellow Drakes when I read up on the
subject at home, but Potamanthus Duns(sometimes called Golden Drakes, and
definitely far more yellow in color than true Yellow Drakes). These were a good
sized(say, 12 xl dry hook), Yellow bodied fly, with mottled yellow wings and
speckled tan legs. Very good fish( I repeat for those who know Penn's,very
good)
were rising, several of them throughout the stretch. We failed miserably, with
dry imitations that weren't quite large or yellow enough. I finally sat and
watched, only then noticing that the fish were rising from clear off the bottom
to nail the bugs under the surface most of the time. Not one dun was taken
after clearing the meniscus of the water and sitting on the top. Sure enough,
Hatches II states that many anglers succeed with large wet flies and nymphs
fished with action, as the naturals shoot toward the surface to hatch. Thus, my
current tying project is a small batch of large, yellow Light Cahill type wets
and dries, along with a try at a more realistic nymph pattern. Once I complete
this project, I will probably never see such a hatch again, but no matter.
Sunday morning: Two frustrated anglers descended on Elk Creek, determined to
do better. I did do better there, with a couple smaller types of mayflies
coming off. Both little Submerger Wets(dark tan), and parachute Adams in size
16 and 18 got some fish in, the wets rose a couple real good ones, but didn't
connect solidly.
We departed Penn's, refreshed from the getaway weekend. Clave Central is still
intact, the creeks look good, and I have some tying to do. Steve and Cathy
from Hemlock Acres send their best to all the ROFF crew.
Tom
p.s. A look at a more detailed map of the Campground Property shows that a
spring does indeed flow down toward the end of the meadow camping area. It
seems currently unnamed, but I am petitioning the village officials to have it
renamed Reid's Run. Seideman's Slough and Gula's Gulch were rejected as
possible alternates, but Bowen's Brook has a ring to it.......
Scott Seidman
news:20030721213643...@mb-m07.aol.com:
> p.s. A look at a more detailed map of the Campground Property shows
> that a spring does indeed flow down toward the end of the meadow
> camping area. It seems currently unnamed, but I am petitioning the
> village officials to have it renamed Reid's Run. Seideman's Slough and
> Gula's Gulch were rejected as possible alternates, but Bowen's Brook
> has a ring to it.......
>
I'm for Reid's Run. Like JW said in Green Beret, "it sings"
--
Scott
Reverse first field of address to reply
Tim J.
"Tom Littleton" wrote...
<snip>
> p.s. A look at a more detailed map of the Campground Property shows
> that a spring does indeed flow down toward the end of the meadow
> camping area. It seems currently unnamed, but I am petitioning the
> village officials to have it renamed Reid's Run. Seideman's Slough
> and Gula's Gulch were rejected as possible alternates, but Bowen's
> Brook has a ring to it.......
Tom's Torrent?
Nice, TR, Tom, thanks.
--
TL,
Tim
------------------------
http://css.sbcma.com/timj
Frank Reid
Glad Clavecentral was fine. By the way, is it true you are mearly Handiman
Mikes Human Jackstand? Can see it now, "Here, Tom, hold this awning up
while I go into town for some hardware."
> Tom
> p.s. A look at a more detailed map of the Campground Property shows that a
> spring does indeed flow down toward the end of the meadow camping area. It
> seems currently unnamed, but I am petitioning the village officials to
have it
> renamed Reid's Run. Seideman's Slough and Gula's Gulch were rejected as
> possible alternates, but Bowen's Brook has a ring to it.......
I'm, sniff, sniff, ... honored to accept this award on behalf....
Well, when I'm famous and have a USGS monitoring station on my namesake (the
peak flow rate on Reid is....), I'll have to write about my life. Looking
for a name for my autobiography now. Got some chapter titles:
Camping Recipes - The Runs Slither Through It
A Precipice on Angling
To Fish or Celebrate the 20th Anniversary
Lawyers I Have Known
Fishing Yoga - The Feeding Duck Position
Removing Brook Trout from your Cot
Heating your Tent - New Uses for Beans
Belly Boats - The Torus From Hell
Wader Reviews - Top To Bottom
--
Frank Reid
Reverse email to reply
Mike Makela
> I'm, sniff, sniff, ... honored to accept this award on behalf....
> Well, when I'm famous and have a USGS monitoring station on my namesake
(the
> peak flow rate on Reid is....), I'll have to write about my life. Looking
> for a name for my autobiography now. Got some chapter titles:
> To Fish or Celebrate the 20th Anniversary
I thought your have only been coming to Penn's for 4 years??
> Removing Brook Trout from your Cot
Is this how you sneak em in...before you load your waders and put'em on the
end of your line?
> Camping Recipes - The Runs Slither Through It
...and
>>Wader Reviews - Top To Bottom
How about condensing these two chapters into - Reid's Waders, Rivers Run
Through'em, including New Techniques for Chumming..
Frank Reid
>
> Is this how you sneak em in...before you load your waders and put'em on
the
> end of your line?
OOOoooaaaahhhhh! Brookies in your waders. So thats why you're always
smilin.
> > Camping Recipes - The Runs Slither Through It
> ...and
> >>Wader Reviews - Top To Bottom
>
> How about condensing these two chapters into - Reid's Waders, Rivers Run
> Through'em, including New Techniques for Chumming..
Ya gonna shit or cut bait? Ohh, you gonna do both?