July 6, 2016 – One Last Trout Tour before the Heat Wave(s) – The Manatawny Creek

Good flow, decent water temps, and HOT in the Oley Valley.

I had the morning free, but with the heat expected this week, options were limited for trout.  I may have one or two more early morning trips in July on deck if it cools off or rains again, but otherwise it is time to give trout a break until late September or early October.  On Tuesday night, I was trying to think of options that would not be too warm, especially options that I had not fished yet this year.  I have not been to the Oley Valley since the winter, and at 4 AM, it’s less than an hour drive to some nice cold creeks (usually) along some quiet country roads and quaint small towns. 

Small town charm (and humor) on the underside of a covered bridge.

The Manatawny’s headwaters and tributaries have some springs and limestone influence, and the Oley Valley seemed to be one of the places that got hit with more rain on Tuesday than my area.  The gages looked good, and when I arrived the creek was downright muddy and reading a decent 66 degrees.  I brought the spinning rod in case of high water, and so I left the fly rod in the ‘Ru for the first round.  I was comfortable wet wading even at 5:30 AM, so I knew it was going to be as hot as advertised today.

A lot of 8 to 10 inch wild browns fearlessly attacked the 2.5 inch plug.

I quickly picked up a few small wild browns on the Dynamic Lures HD Trout in an awesome black pattern.  The lure suspends, and doesn’t run as deep as other similar plugs, but it is very effective in shallower water.  I even catch fish when I work it like a jerkbait, but a straight retrieve downstream, just like a Rapala or spinner, works better most of the time.  I also caught a mess of smallmouth bass, but not one was over 4 inches long; it was almost like they had stocked fingerlings in there.  

A holdover rainbow liked the Dynamic Lures HD Trout too.

Working my way up to a couple deep runs and holes where I usually have luck with larger fish, I dropped a decent wild brown of probably 12 inches.  The very next cast, I thought I hooked another one until I saw that it was a holdover rainbow, also about 12 or 13 inches.  He took to the air twice and put on a good show, running behind me and into the bank a couple times before posing for a quick pic.  He went back to his lair in good shape, but I decided to take another temp reading just in case.  It was still a few clicks below 70, so I pressed on upstream, hoping the water would get cooler in the shaded sections above me.  

An average one this morning, small but awfully pretty.

Once the sun was up over the trees, it was very hot.  Humidity was bad at 5 AM, so adding the heat made me glad I was standing in 67 degree water!  Fishing slowed down as the temp rose, so I walked back to the car and grabbed the fly rod and my pack.  After some water, a banana, and a call to home, I started round two, targeting a couple deep holes with a variety of midges.  Caddis were pretty active, and the little bass and chubs were all over them even if the trout weren't, so I finally settled on a cased caddis nymph, and that proved effective.  It also weeded out many of the chubs and other small fish harassing my every cast with midges.  At the base of a tree root,  after landing another small wild brownie, I coax one more decent holdover rainbow to come out and play.

A few on the fly rod too.  Too many chubs to count, though!

By 11:30 or 12 PM, only spots in the shade were bearable, and those spots were shrinking by the minute, so I decided to call it quits.  The full power of the heat hit me when I came back up onto the road and smelled the livestock in all their glory.  Needless to say, I was happy to join my family at the swim club, and I slept from 10 PM to 8 AM without even getting up to use the bathroom (rare for a man of 47, as you may know).  Fluke in my future, perhaps some bass, but it is too hot for trout, man, too hot.

Full summer mode.  Time for a break from trout until a change in the weather/season.

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