Last of the Late Spring Trout

An excursion yesterday first took me to the North Park Lake in the North Hills of Pittsburgh.  I hit the launch pond back corner where I have actually done very well over the past month as the Creekside blog as documented.  Well... "No Dice" at all.  I switched over to plastic worms as the weeds were getting wider and coming topside.  I couldn't coax a hit.  There were a few small jumpers in the middle of the pond but nothing to make me stick around.  It was about midday so the sun was most likely keeping them down.

Second stop was trusty Pine Creek off of Wildwood Road.  I hit the the spots on the second parking area.  I tagged a few small blue gills. The monster cat I caught a few weeks ago was cruising the creek and actually parked himself under a rock that was no more than 3 feet from the bank.  He wasn't playing ball as I think the pressure on that spot has been heavy as I had to clean up an abandoned Cheetos bag, blue work container and water bottle.  I moved down about 50 yards to the abandoned bridge structure where the were catfish were visible and holding steady in the current but not biting.

Third stop was Pine creek off of Sample Road before Bryant Road.  Nice water back there.  I took the right path off of the lot which ended in a decent bend and flat on the creek.  Fished it for about an hour looking for bass to no avail.  Took a walk down stream to check out structure but it remained very rocky and flat with limited holding.  On the way back I saw a dead minnow on shore and decided to hook it up.  I cast into a dark hole and 30 seconds later... POW!  hooked one of the last spring trout! The water temperature was warm and I did not expect to see that rainbow on the end of my line.

A great way to end the day!

Beverage of the Day:  Arnold Palmer - Diet Half and Half
Message of the Day:  Please do not leave your litter behind- pack out your junk

Sunny Day Pine Creek Adventure

Took my fishing buddy out into Pine Creek today for a father / daughter adventure.  We fished for about three hours on a 1/4 mile stretch of Wildwood Road.  We picked up a few carp and a few small catfish and bass. We cracked a couple of  Mountain Dews, took in the sunshine and chatted about the 26 inch catfish that swam in front of us and rudely ignored our bait.

Short Afternoon Brings Short Bass and Basketball Sized Turtles

Was flipping Trout Magnets in the small pond near the boat ramp in North Park at the far end and got a few small bass.  Weeds are starting to sprout so top water or plastics will soon be the gig.  Got a glimpse of a snapping turtle - it surfaced about 10 feet in front of me and it was about the size of a basketball.  I tried to hit Pine Creek but there was a storm rolling in and the wind was picking up so I headed for shelter in the truck... Live to fish another day!

Cigar of the Day: Alec Bradley -Para Nuestra Familia