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fishnhike77
03-02-2008, 22:55
Hello,

My wife and I are new to PA and are trying to find cool weekend hikes that involve fishable streams....Thanks for any help you guys give in advance.

FNH

fiddlehead
03-02-2008, 23:15
Check out Rauch Gap. I remember 20 years ago the stream in there was getting stocked once (with trout) when i was hiking in there. Not sure if they still do.

Yahtzee
03-03-2008, 00:05
Not sure about hikin' but the Susquehanna about 30-60 miles north of Harrisburg is supposed to be some of the best fly fishing in the east.

Wonder
03-03-2008, 00:07
If you're in Chadds Ford, you have many options. Check out the Pocono area. I'm partial to the Jim Thorpe area.....lehigh river...AT not too far. There is a trail above Glen Onoko falls that follows the whole ridge!
I will look for the title of the book that gives you all the trails.....I found it at Borders in Media, and I think it's called "Great hikes in Pennsylvania". Good maps.....should let you now about fishing. Oh, and also look into Hickory Run State Park.
Welcome to Southeastern Pa...and enjoy it!
Where did you move from?

emerald
03-03-2008, 00:15
Consider French Creek State Park right in your backyard.

I've often thought of looking into shad fishing. I believe one of the better places to fish for shad near you might be the Delaware River. There are opportunities to hike at Pocono Environmental Education Center and Grey Towers possibly not far from good shad fishing.

Wonder
03-03-2008, 08:22
Oh wow! I forgot about PEEC! I went there for a school trip in middle school.....and my Girl Scout Camp was at the top of the mountain. Is there backpacking in French Creek.....I haven't been there since, well, I moved....but also since they closed most of the frisbee golf course.
The horseshoe trail does start there.....but that's a stelth backpack. (PS don't eat the fist at Valley Forge....)

ki0eh
03-03-2008, 08:39
Although the A.T. in eastern PA and NJ is largely high and dry, there certainly are many places in the Pocono area (northeast PA) and the newly dubbed "Pennsylvania Wilds" region (northcentral PA) with a lot of hiking near a lot of streams.

Probably the best place to get information on these would be the "Mid-Atlantic" regional board on Backpacker Magazine forums http://www.backpacker.com/cgi-bin/forums/ikonboard.cgi? . That discussion area is fairly active and contains backpackers who fish, in at least one case knowledgeable enough to have written several guidebooks.

I think if you post your question there about how much hiking and what kind of fishing, you'd be likely to get a lot of helpful response.

Plus, depending on where you came from, the rules for using different kinds of public lands in PA are probably a lot more confusing. Check http://www.satc-hike.org/paoutdoors.html#rules for a synopsis and links directly to the regulations.

Oh, and :welcome

Lone Wolf
03-03-2008, 08:41
http://home.earthlink.net/~ammisov/loyals.htm
http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/forestry/hiking/loyalsock.aspx

LIhikers
03-03-2008, 12:38
Hike into the town of Boiling Springs, PA. Don't they call themselvess the fly fishing capitol of the world?

trailangelmary
03-03-2008, 13:45
The best bass fishing is where the Susquehanna and Juniata Rivers meet in Duncannon. (Also known as the River of Sorrows and the River of Dreams from books written about their history).
http://www.riverfrontcampground.com/

camojack
03-03-2008, 21:51
Hello,

My wife and I are new to PA and are trying to find cool weekend hikes that involve fishable streams....Thanks for any help you guys give in advance.

FNH
One of my favorite places is the Wissahickon Gorge (http://www.gophila.com/C/Philadelphia_County/355/U/The_Wissahickon_Gorge/1912.html); hiking and fishing abound.

Another good web page about it is HERE (http://www.localhikes.com/Hikes/WissahickonGorge_6162.asp)...

Wags
03-07-2008, 13:29
hey man welcome to PA! may i suggest you take this place in:

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateParks/parks/rickettsglen.aspx#directions

Ricketts Glen harbors Glens Natural Area, a National Natural Landmark. Take the Falls Trail and explore the Glens, which boasts a series of wild, free-flowing waterfalls, each cascading through rock-strewn clefts in this ancient hillside. The 94-foot Ganoga Falls is the highest of 22 named waterfalls. Old growth timber and diverse wildlife add to the scenic area. Ricketts Glen State Park is one of the most scenic areas in Pennsylvania

Fishing: The 245-acre Lake Jean has warm-water game fish, panfish and trout. Please follow all Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission rules and regulations

shelterbuilder
03-07-2008, 22:45
hey man welcome to PA! may i suggest you take this place in:

http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/stateParks/parks/rickettsglen.aspx#directions

Ricketts Glen harbors Glens Natural Area, a National Natural Landmark. Take the Falls Trail and explore the Glens, which boasts a series of wild, free-flowing waterfalls, each cascading through rock-strewn clefts in this ancient hillside. The 94-foot Ganoga Falls is the highest of 22 named waterfalls. Old growth timber and diverse wildlife add to the scenic area. Ricketts Glen State Park is one of the most scenic areas in Pennsylvania

Fishing: The 245-acre Lake Jean has warm-water game fish, panfish and trout. Please follow all Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission rules and regulations

BOY! this post really takes me back in time. My first-ever camping trip was at Ricket's Glen State Park - car camping along the lake front with my Dad and my best friend in an old second-hand canvas tent with old sleeping bags from the early 50's that just weren't warm enough for that altitude, even in July! I understand that the state modernized the campground in the mid-70's and put in flush toilets and modern stuff like that, but I haven't been back since then.

The trails that run from the top to the bottom are a really cool hike, but strenuous. Once the stream makes it to the bottom of the mountain, I hear the trout fishing is great. And there used to be another lake nearby (Mountain Springs Lake) that was good for trout (I never caught any up there, but my Dad loved it). The stream that flows out of Mountain Springs Lake is, I believe, the OTHER stream that joins the main stream at the "junction of the trails" on the gorge trail walk. There was an OLD woods road that left the main trail system and meandered over toward Mountain Springs Lake, but it's been over 30 years since I was on it, and it might not even be there anymore.

While you're in that area, you won't be too far from another premier trout stream - Bowman's Creek. Some of this water is "fly-fishing only", and some may be "catch-and-release" water, but this is where my Dad taught me to fly-fish...or tried to, anyway! Not much hiking here, but good fishing.

Bowman's Creek flows into the Susquehanna River just north of here, near the town of Tunkhannock (rts. 6 and 29), and there's bass (smallmouth and rock), walleyed pike, catfish, and some muskies. I spent MANY summers fishing near here, downstream from a little town called Mehoopany, which is "just over the mountain" from the Ricket's Glen area. Again, not much hiking (unless you want to walk some of the old back roads!), but a nice quiet area.

:welcome to Pa.

stormin norman
03-08-2008, 00:32
The Old Loggers Path is a nice 27 mile loop trail about 45 minutes north or Williamsport, PA. I am pretty sure that there are least 2 streams along the trail that you can fish. I hiked it about 8 years ago and it makes a nice 3 day hike or you can easily do it in two days. There are numerous hunting camp/cabins in the area of Masten so you may see some people during the summer/fall months.

Lellers
03-08-2008, 12:09
BOY! this post really takes me back in time. My first-ever camping trip was at Ricket's Glen State Park - car camping along the lake front with my Dad and my best friend in an old second-hand canvas tent with old sleeping bags from the early 50's that just weren't warm enough for that altitude, even in July! I understand that the state modernized the campground in the mid-70's and put in flush toilets and modern stuff like that, but I haven't been back since then.

I try to make it up to Ricketts Glenn at least once a year, if not more. The family camping area is very modern these days. All the sites have been leveled out and built up with stone and gravel, so that now there are some sites next to the lake with significant drop-offs. All the camp roads in the family area are paved, as well, I believe. The place is jam-packed every summer weekend, so I avoid it then and try to go mid-week. There's no backcountry camping at Ricketts. If there were, I'd be out there! In the summer, I like to go mid-week. The falls are most impressive in May after good periods of rain and following the snow melt. By August, Ganoga can be very slow. But I do love Ricketts! I like to stay in the family area and bring my kayaks up. We hike the Falls trail during the day, and then kayak at night, especially nice with a full moon. One Sunday morning I was enjoying a relaxing sunrise paddle, and a bald eagle coasted down from the sky and circled me as I floated in my little kayak. He couldn't have been more than 50 feet away from me. A very cool moment! I'm sure he was checking out the fishing opportunities, as I could see plenty at the bottom of crystal-clear Lake Jean.

ki0eh
03-08-2008, 12:47
For car camping, a quiet spot is Cowanesque Lake in far northern Tioga County. No alcohol ban either. Very few motorboats bother to stop there to disturb the bald eagle and osprey. Seven miles of Mid State Trail uses the park to pass through a ghost town and by a waterfall. No it isn't Ricketts Glen but it doesn't dry up either. Close to the NY wineries and Watkins Glen. Far less crowded even on high summer weekends than anything else up there. Easy to reach from the ever-improving US 15 expressway. I'm told there's fishing, but I don't fish so can't judge that part of it.

shelterbuilder
03-08-2008, 20:26
I try to make it up to Ricketts Glenn at least once a year, if not more. The family camping area is very modern these days. All the sites have been leveled out and built up with stone and gravel, so that now there are some sites next to the lake with significant drop-offs. All the camp roads in the family area are paved, as well, I believe. The place is jam-packed every summer weekend, so I avoid it then and try to go mid-week. There's no backcountry camping at Ricketts. If there were, I'd be out there! In the summer, I like to go mid-week. The falls are most impressive in May after good periods of rain and following the snow melt. By August, Ganoga can be very slow. But I do love Ricketts! I like to stay in the family area and bring my kayaks up. We hike the Falls trail during the day, and then kayak at night, especially nice with a full moon. One Sunday morning I was enjoying a relaxing sunrise paddle, and a bald eagle coasted down from the sky and circled me as I floated in my little kayak. He couldn't have been more than 50 feet away from me. A very cool moment! I'm sure he was checking out the fishing opportunities, as I could see plenty at the bottom of crystal-clear Lake Jean.

It's funny that you wuld mention that there's no backcountry camping in Rickett's Glen...years ago (MANY, MANY years ago), I showed up at the ranger's office looking for a campsite for a few nights over a holiday weekend. I had only my backpacking gear. The ranger took one look, and told me to go down the glen trail and find a secluded spot out of sight of the trail and "just set up camp", which I did. I spent one of the most delightful weekends of my life camped along a very small creek that flowed into the main creek about 40 yards away. Hiked all up and down the trails, let my "inner hippie" commune with nature (yes, this was in the early 70's), and, because it was so early in the season, didn't see another soul the whole time. These days, though, I'm sure that this type of adventure wouldn't be condoned, much less encouraged, by the rangers!