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January & February
The Fly Fishing Show season is in full swing now over the winter months for Wet Fly Waterguides. We just finished up the Fly Fishing Show in Edison NJ and had a great time at the show. I saw a few new vendors and some that had been there in the past return back to the biggest fly fishing show on the east coast. The attendance as usual was over the top by fly anglers from all over. If you have never attended this show please make it a point to come and check it out. Believe me you won't be disappointed as a fly angler.
We'll be hitting the next show down in Cranberry, PA. This is a one day show on Sunday February 23rd and has been a great show over the years. Hats off to the Penn's Woods West TU for putting on this fly fishing show. It is definitely one of my favorites of the year and is well attended by fly anglers in state and out of the state.
The next few shows will be in March. The first will be the Fly Fishing Show in Lancaster PA on March 15,16 and followed by the Maryland Fly Fishing - Collectibles Tackle Show March 22. Both great fly fishing shows to attend.
March
Finally we're starting to see some warmer temperatures and the snow in my yard is gone. Flows on our waters are still up a little but the water clarity is perfect. But hey it's spring, the flows will move up and down for the next two months but we'll deal with it.
We've been out a few times now and the streamer bite has been a little slow. The water temperatures are still on the cold side running around thirty four to thirty six degrees. These water temps are making the fish a little sluggish as far as chasing streamers. Hopefully we'll see a rise in those water temps in the next few weeks and that'll get the fish to run down are streamers.
Well, mother nature just won't let winter be gone here in Central PA. The temperatures have been the twenties and thirties. Water flows are great ,but the water temperatures have been in the mid thirties. The fish have been pretty lethargic and won't move on our streamers real well. All we need is for that water temp to hit that fourtie degree temp and the game should be on. I did have one day where the water temps came up and the fish ate my streamers pretty well, but then a front moved in the afternoon and the bite shut down. All in all I brought a few fish to the net and of course it was great being out and on the water. Better days are coming.
Also on March 26th I had the pleasure of doing a wet fly presentation for the New York Anglers Club in New York City. What a great group of anglers in attendance, about 25 to 30 members and a few on zoom. It was my first time in New York City, a nice place to visit but I don't think I would like to live there. I like the country too much,it's nice and quiet. As I said to the members as I was doing the program it was an honor and privilege to do a presentation for them at the club. As I knew some of the past presenters who have done presentations at the club over the years, it's the who's who in the fly fishing industry. Again it was an honor and privilege to be asked to do my wet fly presentation. Thank You to club member Mark Chehi for making it happen.
April
The guide season is in full swing now and getting a few trips in on my own chasing some trout with streamers. Early on we guided some anglers out of the farm house up in Logan Mills Pa. Mother Nature has not been very kind to us, cold temperatures, rain and some high flows have been what we have been dealing with, but that's April weather for you. Our anglers have been putting some fish in the net despite the conditions. Nymphs and wets have been working well and we even had a good day with some dry flies. We've been seeing BWO's, black stoneflies, a few hendricksons and quill gordons. We,ve been hitting Penns when the water levels are decent and Spring Cr and Little Pine Cr. Big Pine Cr flows are still on the high side as is the Little Juniata. We just need a few decent days and they'll start to drop.
Streamer Brown from Penn's Cr
I had a real good guide trip with fellow angler Charlie Adams on March 31st. Charlie brought a few good ones to the net. We fished a number of locations on the Little J throughout the day and he took fish at every place. As we move into the middle of April hopefully and praying the weather will break and we'll start seeing the Grannoms.
May & June
Just finished up the spring part of the 2025 trout season and what a spring it was. I didn't think I would see a spring like last year but the start of the 2025 season was the worst. It seemed to start raining in the month of late April and it hasn't stopped yet. Streams in the central part of the state are still running a little on the high side. But the waters in the northern part of the state have been in decent shape. As of right now they are starting to get low and warm, which usually happens this time of the year. So our trout fishing in the northern part of the state will come to and end for the summer months. As for the waters in the central part of the state, they are still on the cool side and should fish well for at least two more weeks before the warm water temperatures start taking their toll on the trout. So staring in July we'll put the trout gear away until fall. Its time now to chase smallmouths.
So just a little recap on how guide trips and my personal time on the water went. As some may know I also guide for Sky Blue Outfitters. All of the SBO trips that I guided on were all salvaged during the spring. We were very lucky to make all of the trips happen by taking the anglers north where the waters were fishable. I also did two wild trout trips the first week of June which were in the northern part of the state. Those trips went very well and those anglers had a great time chasing some wild brook trout on some small tributaries. With spring getting so much rain some of the Wet Fly Waterguides trips had to be canceled or moved into the fall, but the guide trips I was able to get in went very well. Those anglers brought some nice fish to the net on wet flies.
Personally, I was able to get out on the water and spend some time with my son, my fishing buddy George and fellow Sky Blue Outfitter guide Taylor. Those trips were absolutely memorable in more ways than one. As most know, the cicadas appeared here again. This was my second time chasing these big bugs here in central PA. Hopefully I'll get a third crack at these guys seventeen years from now, that should put me at eighty three years old. Might need some help getting to the water. These big bugs seemed to bring some very nice fish that you normally don't see to the top to feed. Here are some pic's from trips from May and June.
Wild Trout Trips
Cicada Madness 2025
John & I Upper Pine Cr
The bamboo bug has bitten me again. Penn's Cr brown on the new bamboo wet fly rod.
18 1/2 inches
19 1/2 inches
Built by Jim Downs
July
On July 3rd the first smallmouth float on the Juniata happened. Water was a little cloudy but the fish were willing to eat what we were throwing. In two days we floated around seventeen miles and boated forty-six smallmouths. We should have landed a few more but with it being the 4th of July weekend there was lots of boat traffic on the river. Moving through the river with the tubers and kayakers was a job in itself. I think we'll stay at home the next time on a holiday weekend. But still not a bad couple of days for the first outing.
Just got back from spending three and half days in Potter Co. Got about two hour of work done at the camp, which was putting in a new air conditioner in and the rest of the time was spent chasing smallmouths on Kettle, Pine and the Driftwood Branch. All three streams fished Great. Stream flows were very wadeable and water temperatures were in the high seventies. The weather well, it was smoken hot in the high eighties and humid. The smallmouths were totally keyed on what I was throwing. Saturday seemed to be the best day with close to eighty smallies brought to hand and god knows who many I missed. Don't get me wrong, the other two and half days fished very good too. It never ceases to amaze me of the wildlife you see out there on the water. The absolute highlight of the trip was sneaking up on two river otter's eating some crawfish. You don't see those every day. If your up for a walk and wade trip for smallmouths details are on the Guide Trip page on my website (www.wetflywaterguides.com).
Hit the lake for a few hours on a July morning to boat some smallmouths and largemouths.
Pine Creek River Otter's
As we move out of July and into August it looks like we're going to get a break from the heat at least for a little while. The month of July was just downright miserable with the hot weather and it wasn't much fun baking out there on the lake or stream side in ninety degree weather. Also some wild crazy rain storms popped up with the heat and that brought on the humidity. So we limited our fishing times to early mornings and evenings. During that early part of July we tried to get some time on the Juniata River but the water seemed to be blowed out every time we were making plans to fish it. Hopefully we'll get some good raft floats in August. We were lucky enough to get some walk and wade trips for smallmouths in the northern part of the state with some good results. Good smallmouth and largemouth fishing should continue through August into September.
The middle of August is here already and summer will soon be coming to an end. My buddy and I have been hitting the lake pretty hard and a few good largemouths have come to the net. We're finally getting some floats in on the Juniata River. It's looking pretty good in the next few days we'll get some trips on the river. There are a couple of sections that we haven't floated yet and I would like to float them before the season comes to an end.
A couple fly fishing shows are happening in August, you heard right August. As some might know, the summer months are not known for fly fishing shows. But in the last few years some really nice events for us fly fishermen here in Pennsylvania are taking place. Two of the shows that I attended were the Hook,Line & Harmony Fly Fishing Festival put on by Ryan & Aleecha Johnson in Bedford County, PA and the Keystone Classic Fly Fishing Festival organized by Mike McFarland in Blair County,PA. Both events were represented by tyers and vendors in state and out of the state. Looking forward to these two shows next year.
Keystone Classic Fly Fishing Show
The last few days in August floating the Juniata River
September, October, November
As we were preparing for the fall part of trout season, mother nature had other plans. As late September approached Central Pennsylvania was seeing absolutely no rain in sight and our streams were at the lowest we've seen through the summer months. So getting on the water for some early fall trout fishing was just not going to happen. To make matters worse October and November were just as bad with very low flows. Many of my guide trips had to be canceled or moved to the 2026 season.
Personally for me fall is my time of the season to throw articulating streams to above average brown trout. But that's not going to happen this fall. It's time to clean up my gear and get it put away and start thinking about spring. Let's hope for a good snow pack and a good run off and some rain for 2026.
November 2025 Bucket List Trip
Not all fishing was lost this Fall. On November 1st through the 6th I fulfilled another bucket list trip. This trip was to Bay Flats Lodge in Seadrift, Texas for redfish. Bay Flats Lodge is a Sage endorsed lodge and this trip was hosted by fellow guide and good friend Brian Shumaker. Also along on the trip were six other anglers. The lodge was absolutely first class from the food to the lodging and to all of the staff. The guides were very friendly and knowledgeable of the fishery.
Every morning after a big breakfast we met the guides and headed to the launch for a 30 minute ride to the marsh. Their boats were flats boats for polling in skinny water. On board were Sage R8 8wt rods with Rio floating lines, flies were crab, shrimp and gurgler patterns. Two of us anglers were on the skiff and we took turns casting to some of the most aggressive and powerful fish I ever fished over. Most fish were in the 5 to 7 pound range and a few bigger fish took me into my backing.
Polling for these fish in the marsh was totally a hunt and stalk game. The guide had the advantage of spotting the fish pretty quick from the poling platform, then directed you where to cast the fly. Casting had to be pretty much right in front of the fish and not more than a foot away from the fish. Then a few short fast or long strips keeping the fly moving at all times and then hang on. This was all visual and a good pair of sunglasses was an absolute must have. Watching the fish run down the fly then eat it was so wild.
The highlight of the trip was on our last day on the water, Brian Shumaker and I shared the skiff with guide Dane Scott. Dane was the guide that absolutely loved throwing top water flies to these fish. Dane tied a gurgler shrimp pattern on and it seemed every fish we threw to exploded on the fly. At day's end Brian and I landed around twenty fish each on that top water gurgler. Dane commented that he hadn't seen a top water bit like that in quite some time.
All in all definitely a great bucket list trip to remember in a lifetime. If you're looking to fly fish for a different species that likes to eat flies give Redfish a shot you won't be disappointed. Give Bay Flats Lodge a call they'll love to have you come and experience redfish fly fishing at its best.
