Town Creek and Smoke Hole

Smoke Hole with Mike Town Creek (delayed harvest)

My last two trips have produced a sizable number of rainbow stockies. I hit Town Creek on 3/19 as the water levels fell. The first several holes were still too high to fish, but I began hitting fish about a quarter mile downstream from where I began. My first three fish came from the tail end of a big pool that used to have a cabin beside it. The next two came from the deep run below the hole, and the final three were in the next hole. All 8 trout came on a weighted olive streamer. I had to put two BB split shot on too in order to sink it down deep too. My next trip was to the Smoke Hole section of the South Branch of the Potomac. Mike and I got there before dawn to get a spot. We picked up 5 trout in that hole, then headed to the more remote water below Big Bend Campground. We pulled in 6 in that stretch. They hit on an array of flies, mostly nymphs.

Oh the Weather Continues...

Spring break has come, and with it a torrential flood. All my plans to catch a truckload of trout will need to be postponed, since every river on the east coast is out of its banks. I might try to hit a few lakes later this week and catch some stockies on the still water. The above picture is the Cacapon River on Sunday evening, note the water on Monday afternoon was to the top of the arches. Though it may not be trout water, its still amazing to see how high the river was.

Another Day on the Stream

So...Elliott and I couldn't pass up the opportunity to fish some newly stocked streams yesterday, so we grabbed gear and hit Tonoloway Creek outside Hancock, MD. There were a few ppl there when we pulled in, but we weren't rubbing elbows with them. Elliott pulled a quick limit of two rainbows from a hole that runs under a tree. We ended up staying here all morning because we could see a good many fish swimming under us. I hooked one, but he shook off. Elliott's brother Adam caught landed two and hooked a third. We took a break for lunch and headed to Antietam Creek. That plan busted early. When we rounded the curve for Devil's Backbone, 22 cars of fishermen sat in front of us. It wasn't worth the hassle to try to grab a spot.

Big Hunting Creek

Elliott and I hit Big Hunting Creek outside of Thurmont, MD today. We began in the "Elbow Pocket" and fished upstream to the bridge at Catoctin Hollow Road. I picked up two browns, both in the heads of small pools created by telephone poles, and both on #14 Atomic Peacock Nymphs. The first was almost 12"; the second was about 6". Then, we parked at the Park HQ. I fished downstream to the head of the gorge, picking up one more brown, 9", from a small hole at the top of the gorge. Elliott and moved several fish upstream of where we parked, but couldn't land anything. We stopped around 1230 so I could get back for biology lab.

The Year So Far

So far, I have managed to hit the water 3 times and on two streams. The year started with a short and fruitless trip to Antietam Creek. This happened during the snow storms, so it was nice just to be outside. My next two trips have taken me to Rocky Marsh Run. This is a small creek that appears to get pounded by Powerbait fishermen. In two trips, a friend and I have only managed to land one fish, a small rainbow. The year will definitely get better as stockings will pick up this month.