Kittatinny Valley State Park

[thomaskgrosvenor]

Thinking of investigating this park and its bodies of water. I am not looking for fishing tips or suggestions. I was just hoping that if anyone fished in that area that they could elaborate about what they caught. I will be shoreline fishing and anticipate fishing for bass and panfish. If you fished there, what did you catch and what do know about the species of fish in those waters? Also how is access to the bodies of waters and does one have to watch out for snakes and bears and coyotes, etc? Any insight would be appreciated.

[buzzbaiter]

Bears - oh yeah - one place I see quite a few. Area has many large rock outcroppings - perfect for dens. I once encountered a large one on a small peninsula on one of the lakes. My only exit was where it was standing about 150' away. It was a nerve wracking 5-10 seconds before it turned and ran away.

All the ponds fill up with lilypads, water shield and other plants completely covering much of the water surface from the shoreline out. Open water in middle of the lakes. If you look at satellite maps I attached you'll see its no bs. More than half of the lake is covered. The yellow circle shows the only open water left.

Bank fishing is limited as well due to swampy lands and thick vegetation. Basically you can only fish where the trails come near the water.

They all hold a decent amount of fish with the usual species with bass and pickerel being the primary game fish.

I only fish them from ice out until about early May. After that its weed time and not worth it. I sometimes return in the mid-fall if the weeds die off quickly enough and more open water becomes available. Of course by then its mid/late October and water is getting much colder.

[Eskimo]

Bears - oh yeah - one place I see quite a few. Area has many large rock outcroppings - perfect for dens. I once encountered a large one on a small peninsula on one of the lakes. My only exit was where it was standing about 150' away. It was a nerve wracking 5-10 seconds before it turned and ran away.

All the ponds fill up with lilypads, water shield and other plants completely covering much of the water surface from the shoreline out. Open water in middle of the lakes. If you look at satellite maps I attached you'll see its no bs. More than half of the lake is covered. The yellow circle shows the only open water left.

Bank fishing is limited as well due to swampy lands and thick vegetation. Basically you can only fish where the trails come near the water.

They all hold a decent amount of fish with the usual species with bass and pickerel being the primary game fish.

I only fish them from ice out until about early May. After that its weed time and not worth it. I sometimes return in the mid-fall if the weeds die off quickly enough and more open water becomes available. Of course by then its mid/late October and water is getting much colder.

Good review. You just about covered everything.
The lakes look good on a map, but when you actually get there, you'll see the water is shallow and weed-choked.
There is definitely better fishing near-by.

[mondofish]

Excellent info.

[thomaskgrosvenor]

Thank you. I had a fairly close encounter with a big bear in Allamuchy which has some good places to fish. It was just off of the trail going from the parking lot to the Deer Park Pond.

[thomaskgrosvenor]

How about New Wawayanda Lake or Gardner's Pond? Or do the details above apply to them as well. Anyway, I intend to investigate the area and barring any bear maulings will provide an executive summary of the day.

[MattK]

New waywayanda aka aeroflex is stocked with trout and salmon which i dont think you're going to be catching from the shore this time of year.

Gardners pond is pretty weed choked and another bass/pickerel place.

[buzzbaiter]

Google Earth satellite maps r a Godsend. U can go back and look at old images and compare what lakes look like spring summer fall. It will save u wasting time hiking or driving to a place that looks good but is almost unfishable.

[thomaskgrosvenor]

Well over the summer I have had some fun catching bass and pickerel off shore in and around and through the lilly pads, grass, and weeds, etc. I also have had to go get a few untangled out of the water gardens which requires me going for a bit of a dip. Good thing there are no poisonous water snakes in NJ, or at least I think. But sometimes I ponder that this may be defeating the purpose of fishing being that if I have to go in and get them, then I might as well start noodling. Noodling for pickerel, anyone?

[buzzbaiter]

Good thing there are no poisonous water snakes in NJ, or at least I think.

No but given the rocky terrain surrounding the lakes, can't rule out rattlesnakes and copperheads being around.

That park is great if u have a small boat or kayak. Its one of the few spots I kind of wish I had one.

[thomaskgrosvenor]

Ended up going. Ended up parking at the Lake Wawayanda boat ramp area. A nice trip but also aggravating. Yes, there were a lot of dense lily pads. Not really planning ahead, I started on the east side of the lake. The trail was walk through-able, but fishing from the shore was difficult and I often found myself going out knee deep to have some space to cast or to unsnag from a lily pad.

Eventually (fairly soon) the trail on the east side shoreline becomes unmanageable and then the setting sun on the west side was pounding me and really warming the water on the east side. Anyway, I worked the lily pads the best I could with the texas rigged senko. I was also using a light steel leader in case of pickerel and started going barbless on the hooks. I only caught one LMbass (medium-small in size). Lost a little one when it jumped in the air and another who dove into the lily stems and got off (or maybe I was just stuck in the lily stems).

The first plane I saw coming in to land, I thought was going to crash in the water but it was fun to see the planes land and I cheered for them.

I saw people fishing on the opposite shoreline. When I was done, I studied the map and there appears to be a better trail on the west side of the lake. I may visit again in the afternoon and start on that side. The lake is close to a well used road and next to an airport with small planes. I didn't see any bears or snakes. When I got there, a lot of boaters were finishing their morning fishing.

I believe this lake is the deepest lake in NJ.